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Vol. 1, Part 1: Feuerbach, Section 4
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The German Ideology, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Philosophy and the World
Materialism vs. Idealism
History and Theory
National Character
Criticism and Irony
Communism
Summary
Analysis
Marx and Engels satirize the German philosophers, describing their debates as a “holy war” over concepts and referring to them as “church fathers.” Chief among these church fathers are Bruno Bauer and Max Stirner, whom Marx and Engels ironically dub Saint Bruno and Saint Max, respectively. Bauer and Stirner’s criticism of Feuerbach is akin to a trial for heresy, suggest Marx and Engels. These “Saints” have brought spurious charges on spiritual grounds against Marx and Engels, as well.
While Marx and Engels’s critique of Feuerbach was largely an exposition of their own theories, they now turn to a closer reading of two philosophers who they find even more objectionable. Consequently, they do not grant Bauer and Stirner the basic respect they give Feuerbach, instead mercilessly mocking them with an elaborate comparison to religious leaders seeking to expel heretics from their movement.
Active
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