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From the first day to this, sheer greed was the driving spirit of civilization.
Friedrich Engels
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote suggests that greed is a fundamental motivating force behind the progress of civilization.

Friedrich Engels' quote reflects a critical perspective on the role of greed in shaping human civilization. It implies that the desire for wealth and personal gain has been a primary driver of societal development, influencing economies, politics, and social structures throughout history. This viewpoint invites reflection on the values that underpin civilization and questions whether greed ultimately serves humanity's best interests.

Themes

GreedCivilizationSocietyHuman NatureWealth

In practice

Example use cases

This quote can be used in a discussion about economic theories in a philosophy class.

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Political economy came into being as a natural result of the expansion of trade, and with its appearance elementary, unscientific huckstering was replaced by a developed system of licensed fraud, an entire science of enrichment.
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Just as Darwin discovered the law of evolution in organic nature, so Marx discovered the law of evolution in human history; he discovered the simple fact, hitherto concealed by an overgrowth of idealogy [sic], that mankind must first of all eat and drink, have shelter and clothing, before it can pursue politics, science, religion, art etc.
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...it was always our view that in order to attain this [proletarian revolution] and the other far more important aims of the future social revolution, the working class must first take possession of the organised political power of the state and by its aid crush the resistance of the capitalist class and organise society anew.
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People have learned by bitter experience that the "European fraternal union of peoples" cannot be achieved by mere phrases and pious wishes, but only by profound revolutions and bloody struggles; they have learned that the question is not that of a fraternal union of all European peoples under a single republican flag, but of an alliance of the revolutionary peoples against the counter-revolutionary peoples, an alliance which comes into being not on paper, but only on the battlefield.
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