According to Marx what could be the historical role of the working class?

Correct answer: To replace capitalism with a socialist society

Direct answer: Option C, to replace capitalism with a socialist society. Marx analysed history through class conflict. He argued that capitalism divided society mainly between capitalists, who owned factories and other means of production, and workers, who sold their labour. Because workers produced goods but were exploited for profit, Marx believed they could organise, challenge capitalist ownership, and help create a socialist society. Option A, protecting royal absolutism, supports kings’ unlimited authority and is not Marx’s revolutionary goal. Option B, increasing feudal dues, would strengthen feudal exploitation, which Marx saw as an older class system. Option C is correct because it states the working class’s possible historical role in transforming capitalism. Option D, imposing press censorship, is a method of controlling speech, not the class-based social change Marx described. Memory cue: Marx—workers, class struggle, change from capitalism to socialism.