The Development of Marx's Concept of Alienation: An Introduction

Abstract

The paper presents an introduction to and summary of the concept of alienation as found in the works of Karl Marx, from a developmental perspective. Five separate works, ranging from his early to later writings, are discussed. The paper argues that Marx's concept of alienation is a continuous clarification and expansion of ideas first put forth in 1844. His development in economics supports and qualifies his assertions of a more philosophical nature. The early and later works should neither be understood as having complete continuity nor complete incompatibility, for the later grew out of the earlier.