The Poverty of Philosophy
Author’s Preface
Section summary
Marx’s two-paragraph preface: in France Proudhon passes for a German philosopher, in Germany for a French economist; Marx, as both German and economist, protests against this double error.
M. Proudhon has the misfortune of being singularly misunderstood in Europe. In France he has the right to be a bad economist, because he passes for a good German philosopher. In Germany he has the right to be a bad philosopher, because he passes for one of the greatest of the French economists. We, as both German and economist at the same time, wish to protest against this double error.
The reader will understand that in this ungrateful task it has been often necessary for us to leave the criticism of M. Proudhon, in order to turn to that of German philosophy and to set forth from time to time some views on political economy.