The dialectic of domination and development
The central role of conquest in human history
Karl Marx formulated an intellectually powerful and spiritually moving vision that discerned meaning and purpose in human history. It focused primarily on the development of systems of production and technology and the structures of domination that emerged from them. Marx viewed technological development as tending to increase the level of domination, but also as establishing new possibilities for human progress. Accordingly, he believed that the unfolding economic and social forces of his time were creating unprecedented forms of human exploitation and alienation, but they also were establishing the conditions that would make possible a new era of human emancipation.
Marx saw technological development as integral to the transition from one stage in human history to the next: the invention of agriculture led to the transition from tribal (hunting and gathering) society to ancient society; the invasion by “barbarians” led to the emergence of feudal society; the invention …