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"According to the materialistic conception of history, the production and reproduction of real life constitutes in the last instance the determining factor of history. Neither Marx nor I ever maintained more." - Engels
One of his best quotes, but my favorite part comes later.
One of his best quotes, but my favorite part comes later.
"Were this not the case, the application of the theory to any given historical period would be easier than the solution of a simple equation of the first degree."
There are far too many Marxists who fail to take Engels' emphasis here seriously enough.
There are far too many Marxists who fail to take Engels' emphasis here seriously enough.
Historical materialism does NOT provide Marxists with a secret key with which to unlock the mysteries of history, but rather a framework within which to analyze facts. Nothing more. A great deal of labor is still required from the Marxist to complete a Marxist analysis.
"Too many of the younger Germans simply make use of the phrase, historical materialism, in order to get their own relatively scanty historical knowledge fitted together into a neat system as quickly as possible, and then they think themselves something very tremendous."- Engels
This whole section from E.P. Thompson's seminal Poverty of Theory ought to be mandatory reading, as is the whole book in my opinion.
