The Illusion of the Epoch

Civil Society and the Conception of History

The existing productive forces at all previous historical stages determined the form of intercourse.

The form of intercourse in its turn determined civil society.

The basis of society is the simple family and the tribe.

This civil society is the true source and theatre of all history.

It is absurd that the conception of history up to now has neglected these real relationships and confines itself to high-sounding dramas of princes and states.

Civil society embraces the whole material intercourse of individuals within a definite stage of the development of productive forces.

It embraces the whole commercial and industrial life of a given stage.

It transcends the State and the nation, though it must assert itself in its foreign relations as nationality, and inwardly must organise itself as State.

The word “civil society” emerged in the 18th century when property relationships had already extricated themselves from the ancient and medieval communal society.

Civil society as such only develops with the bourgeoisie.

The social organisation evolves directly out of production and commerce.

In all ages, this forms the basis of:

• the State and
• the rest of the idealistic superstructure

However, it always been designated by the same name.

Conclusions from the Materialist Conception of History

History is the succession of the separate generations.

Each generation exploits:

• the materials
• the capital funds
• the productive forces handed down to it by all preceding generations.

History, thus:

• on one hand, continues the traditional activity in completely changed circumstances and
• on the other hand, modifies the old circumstances with a completely changed activity.

This can be speculatively distorted so that later history is made the goal of earlier history.

For example, the goal for the discovery of America is to further the eruption of the French Revolution.

Thereby, history receives its own special aims and becomes “a person rating with other persons” (to wit: “Self-Consciousness, Criticism, the Unique,” etc.).

This is while it is designated with the words “destiny,” “goal,” “germ,” or “idea” of earlier history.

This is nothing more than an abstraction formed from later history, from the active influence which earlier history exercises on later history.

These separate spheres interact on one another when various nations interact with each other more through:

• the developed mode of production
• the division of labour between them

This turns history into world history.

For example, a machine in England is invented which:

• deprives countless workers of bread in India and China
• overturns the whole form of existence of these empires

This invention becomes a world-historical fact.

Another example is sugar and coffee gaining world-historical importance in the 19th century the Napoleonic Continental System lacked these products.

• This caused the Germans to rise against Napoleon.
• It became the basis of the glorious Wars of liberation of 1813.

This transformation of history into world history is not a mere abstract act on the part of:

• the “self-consciousness”
• the world spirit, or
• any other metaphysical spectre.

It is a material, empirically verifiable act. Every individual furnishes proof of it as he comes and goes, eats, drinks and clothes himself.