The Communist Manifesto：A Modern Edition

InthetwodecadesfollowingthefalloftheBerlinWall,capitalismentrencheditselfgloballyinitsmodern,neoliberalform.Itsascendancewassotriumphantthattheword"capitalism"itselfceasedtobeused;itbecameagiven.Butwiththeoutbreakoffinancialcrisisandglobalrecession,"capitalism"isheardandreadeverywhereagain.Thestatusquoisnolongersomethingtobetakenforgranted.Insuchatime,TheCommunistManifesto,writtenoveracenturyandahalfago,emergesasaworkofgreatprescienceandpower,asEricHobsbawmarguesinhisacuteandelegantintroductiontothismodernedition.HehighlightsMarxandEngels'senduringinsightsintothecapitalistsystem:itsdevastatingimpactonallaspectsofhumanexistence;itssusceptibilitytoenormousconvulsionsandcrises;anditsfundamentalweakness.