Karl Marx

Karl Marx was a philosopher and economist who today is mostly known for being one of the main influencers of communism. His most widely known writing is The Communist Manifesto which he wrote with Friedrich Engels. Born May 5, 1818 and died March 14, 1883, he lived in a capitalist society which is what was his catalyst for creating the communist ideology as he did not like the principles of capitalism. A lot of his inspiration came from a man named Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. Today much of his ideas are in the few communist countries left and all the socialist countries around the world.

To take a brief look at some of his main ideas. He believed that capitalism exploits the working class and thought that the citizens of a society should all be equal, or more specific given what they earn or what they need. With capitalism the people at the top own property and make large incomes which feed off the working classes labor while the ones at the bottom, the working class, work for their survival. This creates class struggle which to best summarize is what Karl Marx mainly opposed.