Showing results for "Classic" in Movements

The Communist Manifesto, written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels and translated into English by Samuel Moore in 1888 under Engels’ supervision, is one of the most influential political texts in modern history. Originally published in 1848, this concise manifesto lays out the principles of communism, the theory of historical materialism, and the role of class struggle as the driving force of history. Marx and Engels call for the working class to unite against capitalist oppression and envision a future society free from class divisions.

Soren Kierkegaard was a Danish theologian, philosopher, poet, social critic, and religious author who is widely considered to be the first existentialist philosopher. He wrote critical texts on organized religion, Christianity, morality, ethics, psychology, and the philosophy of religion, displaying a fondness for metaphor, irony, and parables. Much of his philosophical work deals with the issues of how one lives as a "single individual", giving priority to concrete human reality over abstract thinking and highlighting the importance of personal choice and commitment.

Calling for staunch individualism, "Self-Reliance" is an 1841 essay written by American transcendentalist philosopher and essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson. It contains the most thorough statement of one of Emerson's recurrent themes: the need for each individual to avoid conformity and false consistency and follow their own instincts and ideas. It is the source of one of Emerson's most famous quotations: "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines."

Building on and enriching ideas set forth in Self-Reliance, Emerson argues that true heroism is self-confidence and persistency in the face of corrosive pressures to conform to society.