Adam!Smith!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!mms7thgradecivics.weebly.com/.../marx_smith.pdf ·...
Transcript of Adam!Smith!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!mms7thgradecivics.weebly.com/.../marx_smith.pdf ·...
Adam Smith Karl Marx In 1776, he published a book called “An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations.” It is usually called “The Wealth of Nations” for short. This book covered in detail concepts of economic freedom, the role of self-‐interest and division of labor. Smith believed that the success of a country lied in letting the members of society develop their own specific gifts and pursue what they liked doing and could do well. He believed that this freedom would result in a great variety of trade and the nation would become wealthy. He also supported a “laissez faire‟ economy, which means that the government or state should interfere as little as possible in the trading activities between people, as that would only harm trade. The expression “the invisible hand” is mainly associated with Adam Smith. According to Smith, in a “laissez faire‟ economy, each member will try to pursue and maximize his own self-‐interest. It is the interaction and exchange between the different members in terms of goods and services traded that will make each member better off than simply producing for himself. He believed that in a free market, no kind of regulation would be needed to ensure that a mutually beneficial exchange of goods and services took place, because this "invisible hand" would guide the different members to trade in the most mutually beneficial way.
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels published the Communist Manifesto in 1848 in hope of a social revolution. In it, they explained their view of history so far and also explained what they thought should happen next. Marx's view of history is summed up in the first line of his manifesto. He said, "The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggle." Marx explained that he saw history as a series of struggles between two groups -‐ the bourgeoisie, or the people who owned the land and money, and the proletariat, or the oppressed workers. He saw history as progressing through three stages. First, there was capitalism. Next, he said, would come socialism, and then, finally, communism. He described communism as a classless society. They thought that capitalism would sooner or later collapse. He predicted that workers would one day unite to overthrow capitalism and bring about a better society, which would be run on Communist principles. He talked about the means of production which were the basic elements needed to produce goods. These, he said, included land, natural resources, and technology. He felt that it was important for all workers to have a share in the ownership of these means of production. Groups of young radicals adopted his ideas; they called Marx the father of Communism. They became followers of Marx and Engels' most famous piece of writing, The Communist Manifesto. Marx's followers called their new philosophy "Marxism."
Karl Marx
Adam Smith