[Marxism] An advice from Fred Engels

[Johannes Schneider]

Engels to C. Schmidt, In Berlin, London, August 5, 1890

(...)
In general, the word "materialistic" serves many of the younger writers in Germany as a mere phrase with which anything and everything is labeled without further study, that is, they stick on this label and then consider the question disposed of. But our conception of history is above all a guide to study, not a lever for construction after the manner of the Hegelian. All history must be studied afresh, the conditions of existence of the different formations of society must be examined individually before the attempt is made to deduce them from the political, civil law, aesthetic, philosophic, religious, etc., views corresponding to them. Up to now but little has been done here because only a few people have got down to it seriously. In this field we can utilize heaps of help, it is immensely big, anyone who will work seriously can achieve much and distinguish himself. But instead of this too many of the younger Germans simply make use of the phrase historical materialism (and everything can be turned into a phrase) only in order to get their own relatively scanty historical knowledge — for economic history is still and its swaddling clothes! — constructed into a neat system as quickly as possible, and they then deem themselves something very tremendous.(...)

Source:
http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1890/letters/90_08_05.htm

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