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Karl Marx Human relationships have always been dynamic. Change and
adaptability have gone hand in hand with the passage of time for humansociety.
Systems have been developed to regulate, direct and control the resources of
this society. The systems are referred to as governments and the resources as
the populace or inhabitants and forces of production. A government must be
dynamic in its nature reflecting the change in society. At times these systems
have resisted the necessity to adapt with its components (Society) creating a
deficit between the system and those it regulates. As the deficits develop, they
cause instability, and could lead to revolution.1 Theories have been developed
to explain the systemic phenomenon called revolution. karl Marx was the greatest
thinker and philosopher of his time. His view revolutionized the way in which
people think. He created an opportunity for the lower class to rise above the
aristocrats and failed due to the creation of the middle class. Despite this
failure, he was still a great political leader and set the basis of Communism in
Russia.
His life contributed to the way people think today, and because of him
people are more open to suggestion and are quicker to create ideas on political
issues. Karl Heinrich Marx was born May 5th, 1818 in Trier. Although he had
three other siblings, all sisters, he was the favorite child to his Father,
Heinrich. His mother, a Dutch Jewess named Henrietta Pressburg, had no interest
in Karl's intellectual side during his life. His father was a Jewish lawyer, and
before his death in 1838, converted his family to Christianity to preserve his
job with the Prussian state. When Heinrich's mother died, he no longer felt he
had an obligation to his religion, thus helping him in the decision in turning
to Christianity. Karl's childhood was a happy and care-free one.
His parents had
a good relationship and it help set Karl in the right direction. His ‘splendid
natural gifts' awakened in his father the hope that they would one day be used
in the service of humanity, whilst his mother declared him everything would go
well. (The story of his life, Mehring, page 2). In High school Karl stood out
among the crowd. When asked to write a report on How to choose a profession he
took a different approach. He took the angle in which most interested him, by
saying that there was no way to choose a profession, but because of
circumstances one is placed in an occupation. A person with a aristocratic
background is more likely to have a higher role in society as apposed to someone
from a much poorer background. While at Bonn at the age of eighteen he got
engaged to Jenny von Westphalen, daughter of the upperclassmen Ludwig von
Westphalen. She was the childhood friend of Marx's oldest sister, Sophie. The
engagement was a secret one, meaning they got engaged without asking permission
of Jenny's parents. Heinrich Marx was uneasy about this but before long the
consent was given. Karl's school life other than his marks is unknown.
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