State, Despotism, and Historical Transformation in Karl Marx: An Analysis of Marx’s Critique of Forms of Government

Abstract

This article analyzes the Marxian conception of the State through its critique of forms of government and its materialist interpretation of history. Unlike the classical tradition of political philosophy, represented by thinkers such as Plato, Aristotle, and Machiavelli, Karl Marx showed no systematic interest in classifying forms of government. This absence stems from his understanding of the State as an instrument of class domination and as an expression of material relations of production. Based on the works of Marx and Engels, as well as the interpretation developed by Norberto Bobbio, this study examines the negative conception of the State, the concept of Bonapartism, the dictatorship of the proletariat, the historical periodization grounded in modes of production, and the Marxian view of pre-state societies. It is argued that, for Marx, institutional differences among political regimes are of secondary importance when compared to the persistence of economic relations of exploitation that sustain state power. The article concludes that Marx's critique of forms of government is subordinated to the broader objective of overcoming the State and establishing a classless society.