Books

1867. Hamburg, Otto Meisner, 1867. 8vo. Nice contemporary black half calf with gilt spine. Minor wear to hinges and capitals, which have tiny, barely noticeable professional restorations. Inner hinges re-enforced. Contemporary owner's names (Emil Kirchner and Karl Kirchner (1887)) to front free end-paper. Contemporary book-plate to inside of front board (Ernst Ferdinand Kirchner). A very nice copy with just the slightest of occasional brownspotting. Housed in a very nice custom-made black full morocco box with gilt llettering to spine. XII, 784 pp. Scarce first edition of Marx' immensely influential main work, arguably the greatest revolutionary work of the nineteenth century. With its attack on capitalists and capitalist mode of production, this cornerstone of 19th century thought came to determine the trajectory of economics and politics of the Western world. Marx' groundbreaking "Das Kapital" originally appeared in German in 1867, and only the first part of the work appeared…

"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.