In 1840, two short expressions, a mere seven words, transformed socialist politics forever. One put a name to a tendency within the working class movement: “I am an Anarchist.”  The other presented a critique and a protest against inequality which still rings: “Property is Theft!”

Toast to the Revolution

Le Peuple

17^th October 1848

Translation by Shawn P. Wilbur

Citizens,

When our friends of the democratic republic, apprehensive of our ideas and our inclinations, cry out against the qualification of socialist which we add to that of democrat, of what do they reproach us? — They reproach us for not being revolutionaries.

Supplemental Material (online only)

This webpage contains material by or about Proudhon which did not, for whatever reason, get included into "Property is Theft!" or its introduction or was translated or produced after it was completed.

By Proudhon

Letter to workers on elections (1864)

About Proudhon

The latest extracts from “Property is Theft!” are now available. As well as the remaining parts of the introduction, extracts of two texts from the start and end of Proudhon’s political life are included. These are 1841’s Letter to M.

Appendix: On Terminology

In terms of the language he used, Proudhon was by no means consistent. Thus we have the strange sight of the first self-proclaimed anarchist often using “anarchy” in the sense of chaos. Then there is the use of the terms property and the state, both of which Proudhon used to describe aspects of the current system which he opposed and the desired future he hoped for.

Acknowledgements

A note on the texts

The texts are presented in chronological order, so that readers can get a feel of how Proudhon’s ideas and ways of expressing himself changed over time. We have aimed to present newly translated material in full and have edited those which are available in English already. Any edits are indicated by […] and any additions are surrounded by []. We have tried to reproduce Proudhon’s own stresses and capitalisations.

A note on the translations

All the texts have been translated in British English rather than American English. In addition, certain parts of previous translations have been corrected to bring their meaning more in line with the original French (as such consistently translating “salariat” as wage-labour or wage-worker) or popular usage (such as replacing Tucker’s “property is robbery” with “property is theft”). Where this has been done, it is indicated by a footnote that includes the uncorrected translations.

Chapter XIV: Summary and Conclusion

[...]

If I am not mistaken, the reader ought to be convinced at least of one thing, that social truth cannot be found either in utopia or in routine: that political economy is not the science of society, but contains, in itself, the materials of that science, in the same way that chaos before the creation contained the elements of the universe. The fact is that, to arrive at a definite organisation, which appears to be the destiny of the race on this planet, there is nothing left but to make a general equation of our contradictions.

Chapter XI: Eighth Epoch — Property

§II Causes of the establishment of property

Property occupies the eighth place in the chain of economic contradictions; this point is the first one that we have to establish.