Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State

Engels, Frederick

ISBN 10: 0853152608 / ISBN 13: 9780853152606

Published by Lawrence & Wishart, Limited, 1972

Ships from the UK. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # GRP57240190

Synopsis:

"An eternal being created human society as it is today, and submission to 'superiors' and 'authority' is imposed on the 'lower' classes by divine will." This suggestion, coming from the pulpit, platform and press, has hypnotized the minds of men and proves to be one of the strongest pillars of exploitation.

The history of the family dates from 1861, the year of the publication of Bachofen's "Mutterrecht" (maternal law) Engles makes the following propositions:

*That in the beginning people lived in unrestricted sexual intercourse, which he dubs, not very felicitously, hetarism.

*That such an intercourse excludes any absolutely certain means of determining parentage; that consequently descent could only be traced by the female line in compliance with maternal law -- and that this was universally practiced by all the nations of antiquity.

*That consequently women as mothers, being the only well known parents of younger generations, received a high tribute of respect and deference, amounting to a complete woman's rule (gynaicocracy), according to Bachofen's idea.

*That the transition to monogamy, reserving a certain woman exclusively to one man, implied the violation of the primeval religious law (i.e., practically a violation of the customary right of all other men to the same woman), which violation had to be atoned for its permission purchased by the surrender of the women to the public for a limited time.

Product Description: The Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State: in the light of the researches of Lewis H. Morgan (Der Ursprung der Familie, des Privateigenthums und des Staats) is a historical materialist treatise written by Friedrich Engels and published in 1884. It is partially based on notes by Karl Marx to Lewis H. Morgan's book Ancient Society. He also made use of many and diverse data gleaned in his own studies of the history of Greece, Rome, Old Ireland, and the Ancient Germans. Engels focuses on early human history, following the disintegration of the primitive community and the emergence of a class society based on private property. He looks into the origin and essence of the state, and concludes it is bound to wither away leaving a classless society. The book argues that the first domestic institution in human history was not the family but the matrilineal clan. Engels here follows Lewis H. Morgan's thesis as outlined in his major book, Ancient Society. Lenin would later describe it as “one of the fundamental works of modern socialism.”

Bibliographic Details

Title: Origin of the Family, Private Property, and ...
Publisher: Lawrence & Wishart, Limited
Publication Date: 1972
Binding: Soft cover
Condition: Good