Karl Marx is in a very real sense the father of Socialism. A1 theories of modern socialism are directly or indirectly influenced by hi; writings, while some of them, like Communism, are really the continuatior of Marxist teachings and theories up to the present day. Historically speaking, there were socialist and communist theories before Marx; such a: Plato’s Communism, More’s Utopia, or the French Utopian Socialism of St Simon and Fourier, or Robert Owen’s socialist plans.
But all of them wen based upon impracticable dreams of a ‘utopia’, which existed nowhere o upon unscientific analysis of human society and life-. It was Marx who firs gave a scientific analysis of what human society is and spoke in detail of th stages through which it must evolve into socialist or communist society
Hence he is now universally regarded as the founder of scientific socialisrr an honour which he shares with his friend and collaborator, Friedric! Engles.