Socialism: Utopian and Scientific is one of the most important books on socialism, first published in 1880 by German-born socialist Friedrich Engels. The work was primarily extracted from a longer polemic work published in 1876. It is still an important source of information on socialism.

Socialism, Utopian and Scientific needs no preface. It ranks with the Communist Manifesto as one of the indispensable books for any one desiring to understand the modern socialist movement. It has been translated into every language where capitalism prevails, and its circulation is more rapid than ever before.

Socialism, Utopian and Scientific is a political science classic that needs no preface. It ranks with the Communist Manifesto as one of the indispensable books for any one desiring to understand the modern socialist movement. It has been translated into every language where capitalism prevails, and its circulation is more rapid than ever before. The book explains the differences between utopian socialism and scientific socialism, which Marxism considers itself to embody. The book explains that whereas utopian socialism is idealist, reflects the personal opinions of the authors and claims that society can be adapted based on these opinions, scientific socialism derives itself from reality. It focuses on the materialist conception of history, which is based on an analysis over history, and concludes that communism naturally follows capitalism. Engels begins the book by chronicaling the thought of utopian socialists, starting with Saint-Simon. He then proceeds to Fourier and Robert Owen. In Chapter Two, he summarizes dialectics, and then chronicles the thought from the ancient Greeks to Hegel. Chapter Three summarizes dialectics in relation to economic and social struggles, essentially echoing the words of Marx

A selection of writings from Friedrich Engels. Socialism, Utopian and Scientific; The Principles of Communism; The Part Played by Labour in the Transition From Ape to Man; Ludwig Feuerbach and the end of Classical German Philosophy; and The Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State.

This book is an excellent introduction for anyone who wants to understand Marxist theory but does not feel ready to dive headlong into Das Capital. It explains socialist theory clearly and then looks at various ideologies connected with socialism.