Books

1905. [Kapitalut:] Balchik, Izdanie na Krist'o Ivanov, 1905. [Speech On the Question of Free Trade:] Sofia 8vo. In contemporary red half calf. Extremities with wear. Previous owner's name in contemporary hand to upper part of both title-pages. Light browning throughout and a few occassional underlignings in text, mainly in "A speech on free trade". [Kapitalut:] XXXVIII, 122 pp. [Rech za...:] 27, (1). The exceedingly rare first partial Bulgarian translation of Marx's 'Das Kapital', heft. 1. Translator Dimitar Glagoev, who eventually in 1909-10 made the first complete translation was the founder and leader of the Bulgarian Worker's Social Democratic Party became (or Narrow Socialists, or Tesniaki), became the the first Marxist propangandist in Bulgaria. The present publication is presumably printed in very low number and are of the utmost scarcity; OCLC locate no institutional holdings (We know of one copy in the SS. Cyril and Methodius National Library, Bulgaria) and no copy has…

"Das Kapital," written by Karl Marx, is a seminal work critiquing the capitalist system's foundations and mechanisms. Published in 1867, this extensive analysis of capitalism delves into its economic processes, the exploitation inherent within, and its eventual contradictions which Marx believed would lead to its downfall. Marx introduces key concepts such as commodity, value, surplus value, and the labor theory of value, arguing that the value of a commodity is determined by the labor required for its production. He criticizes how capitalists profit by exploiting workers, paying them less than the value of their labor while selling the products for their full value. Marx's critique extends to the dynamics of capital accumulation, technological advancements, and their effects on the proletariat, predicting increasing capital centralization and crises stemming from capitalism's internal contradictions. "Das Kapital" covers the circulation and distribution of capital, explaining how surplus value is divided among different classes and sectors, leading to cycles of boom and bust. Despite its influence, "Das Kapital" has faced criticism for its total failure in economic predictions, such as the underestimation of capitalism's adaptability and the overemphasis on the labor theory of value. Critics argue Marx's predictions of escalating class struggle and the proletariat revolution have not materialized as expected, questioning his views on human nature and the efficiency of market mechanisms. Nonetheless, "Das Kapital" remains a pivotal work in economic and political thought, offering a deep, if wrong, critique of capitalism and its socio-economic impacts.