It is in this third volume that Marx sets out his central, epoch-making thesis that 'the basic laws of motion of the capitalists mode of production lead to explosive crises and its ultimate collapse'. Here we find not only a sustained economic and social description of capitalism as a system and the bourgeoisie as a class but a full statement of why declining rates of profit and periodic crises of overproduction spell the inevitable end of capitalism and the likely birth of a far better society. Published by Engels in 1894, this book has remained a potent source of inspiration ever since.
