What did Marx leave out?

Question

Is history reduced to class struggles sufficient to evince change
or as Che Guevara says

"I am not interested in dry economic socialism. We are fighting against misery, but we are also fighting against alienation. One of the fundamental objectives of Marxism is to remove interest, the factor of individual interest, and gain, from people's psychological motivations. Marx was preoccupied both with economic factors and with their repercussions on the spirit. If communism isn't interested in this too, it may be a method of distributing goods, but it will never be a revolutionary way of life."

Answer 1

He left out a consideration of human nature as it relates to collectivist vs. individualist thinking.

People in western societies tend to be individualists, i.e. they believe that the individual is more important than society. This belief is consistent with Western religions, which stress the importance of an individual's soul. Capitalism agrees very well with such beliefs, since individualists like to keep what they earn.. Communism, however, does not. If too many people are "looking out for number one" as they did in the Soviet Union, the "distribution of goods" will be grossly uneven and the system will fall apart for economic reasons.

People in Eastern societies tend to be collectivist - that is, they believe that society is more important than the individual. Their religious and philosphical beliefs, such as the Dao, Letters of Confucius, and Buddhism, stress the unimportance of identity compared to "being one with everything", to coin a sweeping cliche. Communism more or less gets along with collectivism, since the number of people "looking out for number one" is smaller than it would be in an individualist society. Thus, the system more or less endures until increased contact with indivualist societies changes the balance between the two philosophies. This seems to be happening in China, which is resisting change but nevertheless very slowly becoming a capitalist society.

Anyway, that's my take on what Marx may have omitted from his writings. I could be wrong!

Answer 2

I agree that communism will never be a revolutionary way of life. However it does contain some of the ingredients without which it would be impossible to achieve a society in which the majority of the people are spritually and materially stisfied (to whatever extent that is possible at all).
For example, in a capitalist economy, most of the capital is owned or controlled by a very few. (Half of US capital is now controlled by .5% of Americans.) The overwhelmingly important determinant of what is done in a capitalist economy is not what is good for people or for the public interest or for the environment, nor what morality or religion or tradition indicates should be done. What is done is mostly what will maximise returns on investment. That is, what is done is what is most profitable. The more you let profit maximisation determine what is done the more you will get inequality, waste, polarisation, the destruction of the environment, social breakdown, inappropriate development, and several other nasty things. Production for profit clashes with production to meet needs.
Most of the capital is owned or controlled by a very few. (Half of US capital is now controlled by .5% of Americans.) The overwhelmingly important determinant of what is done in a capitalist economy is not what is good for people or for the public interest or for the environment, nor what morality or religion or tradition indicates should be done. What is done is mostly what will maximise returns on investment. That is, what is done is what is most profitable. The more you let profit maximisation determine what is done the more you will get inequality, waste, polarisation, the destruction of the environment, social breakdown, inappropriate development, and several other nasty things. Production for profit clashes with production to meet needs.
Communism on the other hand seeks equality. This is not the "every one is equal in all respects" kind of equality but more of an "every one gets equal opportunity" kind of equality.
This should be an integral feature of our society and that is why communism, though incomplete in many respects, is the right direction for us to progress in.

Answer 3

He left out reality and it's effects on the world.

Oh yes, and human nature as well.

One more, the fact that everyone can't be expected to behave the same.

Answer 4

Which Marx?
Groucho, Chico, Harpo, or Zeppo (lol)

Answer 5

He left out the spirit of human endeavours...

Answer 6

the middle class