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must put the question distinctly.—Were the interest of the third class truly the interests of the whole of humanity, or did this third class, the Bourgeoisie, carry in its bosom yet another, a fourth class, from which it desired to separate itself by law, and so to subject it to its dominion?
It is now time, gentlemen, that in order to avoid the danger of being exposed to gross misinterpretation, I should explain clearly the meaning of the word Bourgeoisie or upper Bourgeoisie, as the designation of a political party, and the sense in which I use the word Bourgeoisie.
In the German language the word Bourgeoisie is usually translated by the burgher or citizen class. But I do not use it in this sense; we are all citizens, the working man, the poor citizen [Kleinbürger] the rich citizen [Grossbürger] and so forth. The word Bourgeoisie has on the contrary in the course of history acquired a very special political significance which I will now immediately explain to you.
The whole burgher or not noble class, when the French Revolution occurred, divided itself, and still remains divided, speaking generally, into two subdivisions, namely in the first place, the class whose members either entirely or mainly derive their income from their labour, and who have either no capital, or a very modest one to assist them in exercising a productive industry for the support of themselves and their families. To this class belong therefore the working men, the lower grade of citizens, handicraftsmen, and generally speaking the peasants. The second class consists of those who
