The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte

How does writing about the Second Republic and the rise of Napoleon III enable Karl Marx to express some of his more general economic and philosophical views? How does The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte compare to his other notable works?

The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte begins with one of Marx’s most famous statements: “Hegel remarks somewhere that all facts and personages of great importance in world history occur, as it were, twice. He forgot to add: the first time as tragedy, the second as farce” (10). How is this quote relevant to Marx’s key ideas in the essay?

Choose an example of how Marx uses the theory of base and superstructure in The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte. Explain how it is an example of base and superstructure. Based on this example, do you find the idea of base and superstructure a useful way of looking at history? Why or why not?