The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State

Main Ideas

• Engels examines the development of the family, private property, and the state through the lens of historical materialism.
• The book asserts that the family, as a social institution, underwent significant changes from matriarchy to patriarchy.
• Engels links the emergence of private property to the development of agriculture and animal husbandry, which led to social inequality.
• He views the state as a tool of class oppression that emerged with the advent of class society.
• Engels analyzes the transition from primitive communal systems to class society, emphasizing the role of economic factors in this process.
• The book emphasizes that changes in the economic base of society lead to changes in its superstructure, including the family and the state.
• Engels predicts that with the disappearance of class society, both the state and private property will vanish.