Skip to content

They direct their attacks not against the bourgeois…

“They direct their attacks not against the bourgeois conditions of production, but against the instruments of production themselves; they destroy imported wares that compete with their labour, they smash to pieces machinery, they set factories ablaze, they seek to restore by force the vanished…” quote by Karl Marx
Download Open image
““They direct their attacks not against the bourgeois conditions of production, but against the instruments of production themselves; they destroy imported wares that compete with their labour, they smash to pieces machinery, they set factories ablaze, they seek to restore by force the vanished status of the workman of the Middle Ages.””

Karl Marx

About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Revolutionaries target production tools and imported goods to restore a medieval workman status, not the economic system itself.

In simple terms: They attack technology and imports to revert to old labor hierarchies.

Key Takeaway

Recognize how fear of change can drive destructive actions.

Themes

politics economics technology history

Mood

critical historical

Type

political analytical

When to use this quote

  • labor movements
  • trade wars
  • technological backlash

Key Concepts

marxism class struggle industrialization

Questions to Reflect On

  • What drives such destructive tactics?
  • Can modern movements learn from this?
A Different Perspective

May overlook workers' agency.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet

More by Karl Marx

Explore all 571 Karl Marx quotes

More Attacks quotes

Browse all 291 Attacks quotes