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First edition in French, first issue; folio (29 x 20 cm); 351pp; two title-pages with engraved vignettes, engraved portrait, facsimile letter from Marx and from the publisher, stamp of previous bookseller on title-page, previous owner's signature "G.See" on front free endpaper; contemporary green half calf, decorated boards, some wear to the extremities; overall a good copy. First edition in French of the first volume of Das Kapital. This is the first issue with the publisher Lachâtre's imprint. The book was published in parts from August 1872 to November 1875 and then bound in total upon completion. Originally published in German 1867 this French edition was only the second translation, preceded only by the Russian translation of 1872, but Marx collaborated greatly with Lachâtre and he felt that this translation was more important than the Russian and his extensive work on the project means "Le Capital was not a mere translation, but rather an original work, relevant from a textual point of view" (Books that Made Europe, p. 248). Maurice Lachatre (1814-1900) was a Parisian radical bookseller, publisher, and collaborator of Félix Pyat's (with whom Marx butted heads over the growth of the International Working Men's Association in France). Lachâtre's projected publication of the anarchist newspaper "La Commune" nearly cost him his life after the fall of the Paris Commune, when his bookshop was attacked with murderous intent by the Versaillaise army. It was while exiled first in Belgium and then Switzerland that Lachâtre began work on publishing the present edition, though he was not free to return to Paris until 1879. The second and third volumes of Das Kapital were published after Marx's death by Engels in 1885 and 1894, and were first published in French in 1900 and 1902. The history of the twentieth century if Marx's legacy. Stalin, Mao, Che, Castro -- the icons and monsters of the modern age have all presented themselves as his heirs. Whether he would recognise them as such is quite another matter. Nevertheless, writing one hundred years after his death, half the world's population was ruled by governments that professed Marxism to be their guiding faith. His ideas have transformed the study of economics, history, geography, sociology and literature. Not since Jesus Christ has an obscure pauper inspired such global devotion -- or been so calamitously misinterpreted' (Francis Wheen, in his introduction to Karl Marx, 1999). The signature "G.See" could belong to Germain Sée, (1818-1896), a well-known French doctor who specialized in the study of lung and cardiovascular diseases. Books that Made Europe p.248.

"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.