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Psychology & SocietyThe Origin of the Family, Private Property and the StateFriedrich EngelsThe Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State

The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State

Friedrich Engels

Psychology & SocietyEnglish
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Drawing on the American anthropologist Lewis Henry Morgan's studies of the Iroquois and other peoples, Friedrich Engels traces how human society developed…

Catalogue details

Author
Friedrich Engels
Category
Psychology & Society
Language
English
Source
Project Gutenberg

About this book

Drawing on the American anthropologist Lewis Henry Morgan's studies of the Iroquois and other peoples, Friedrich Engels traces how human society developed from early communal groups, in which descent was counted through the mother, to the monogamous family, private property and the state. He argues that the rise of private wealth brought about 'the world-historic defeat of the female sex', and that the state arose to protect the property of the ruling class.

Context and significance

Engels (1820–1895), Karl Marx's lifelong collaborator, wrote the book in 1884, after Marx's death, using Marx's notes on Morgan. Many of its anthropological claims are now outdated, but it remained central to socialist and feminist debates. This translation is by Ernest Untermann. Read The Communist Manifesto.

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