Summary
Summary Marx - Eighteenth Brumaire
- Module
- Marx and Marxism
- Institution
- Oxford University (OX)
Notes on Marx's text 'The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte'
[Show more]
1 review
By: bni_nir • 6 year ago
useless for my purpose.
Content preview
The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte● All the great events and characters of history occur twice, firstly as tragedy, secondly as
farce
○ Louis after Napoleon, democratic socialists (montagne) of 1848-51 after
the Jacobin democrats of 1793-93
○ Men make their own history, but not just as they please – they inherit
circumstances, symbols and traditions
○ Hence when they attempt to revolutionize themselves they inevitably
draw upon spirits of the past, borrowing names, words, uniforms etc
○ French Revolution draped itself alternately as Roman republic and
Roman empire
○ Cromwell borrowed Old Testament language, passions and delusions for
a bourgeois revolution
○ Men speak in the language of past revolutions as a substitute for
understanding what is happening; when they understand the old symbols etc are
jettisoned
○ ‘The social revolution of the nineteenth century cannot create its poetry
from the past but only from the future’
● The revolution of 1848 began as a bourgeois attempt to widen the franchise and
overthrow the financial aristocracy, but was radicalised by the proletariat
○ Interpreted by the proletariat as having created a ‘social republic’, which
stood in ‘the most bizarre contradiction to everything that could be put into practice there
and then, given the material available, the level of popular education, present
circumstances and conditions’
● After each defeat the proletariat allied themselves with different champions from
different strata, and ‘ever more ambiguous figures’ took up leadership
○ the workers sought cooperative banks, workers’ associations etc - choice
to ‘attain salvation behind society’s back, privately, within its own limited conditions of
existence’ rather than attempting to overthrow the old world by means of its great
resources, and hence ‘necessarily coming to naught’
Summary of periods 1848-51
1. February-May 1848: February period. Prologue. Sham solidarity
2. Period of founding the republic and of the constituent assembly
a. May-June 1848. Struggle of all classes against the proletariat. Defeat
of proletariat in June days
b. June - December. Dictatorship of pure bourgeoisie, drafting of
constitution, imposition of state of siege in Paris. Bourgeois dictatorship supplanted by
Bonaparte’s election to presidency in December.
c. December - May 1849. Struggle of constituent assembly with Bonaparte
and party of order in alliance with him. End of constituent assembly. Fall of the
republican bourgeoisie.
3. Period of the constitutional republic and legislative national assembly
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller patrickfleming. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for £4.49. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
48756 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy revision notes and other study material for 15 years now