“I will only remark that from these premises one could conclude that might is right—I mean the right of the clenched fist, and of personal inclination. Indeed, the world has often come to that conclusion. Prudhon upheld that might is right. In the American War some of the most advanced Liberals took sides with the planters on the score that the blacks were an inferior race to the whites, and that might was the right of the white race.”
“Well?”
“You mean, no doubt, that you do not deny that might is right?”
“What then?”
“You are at least logical. I would only point out that from the right of might, to the right of tigers and crocodiles, or even Daniloff and Gorsky, is but a step.”
The Idiot, Gutenberg.org, (Tr. Eva Martin)Chapters 14 and 15 of Das Kapital review much of the material, from the 1844 manuscripts, that I had covered in my Humanism Series – with more historical detail, analyses, and updating. This strengthens my belief that Dostoevsky had read it. Further, Chapter 15 discusses the Cotton Famine, which had been largely brought on by the “American War.” Lastly, Marx’s centering the mechanistic phase of capitalism on James Watt’s patenting of the steam engine fits the passage I quoted in Part 6 of this series.
I’ll continue where I left off before this diversion soon. Meanwhile, here’s a short video that captures the sense of what Marx discusses:
P.S. The picture accompanying the video link above reminds me of a great post by my educational go-to blogger, Steven Singer, so I’ll link to it here.
Seeker247365v2 