Full Idea
Consciousness is from the very beginning a social product.
Gist of Idea
Consciousness is a social product
Source
K Marx / F Engels (The German Ideology [1846], §1.A)
Book Reference
Marx,K./Engels,F.: 'The German Ideology', ed/tr. Arthur,C.J. [Lawrence and Wishart 1985], p.51
A Reaction
This slogan has produced the sociological view of truth which has stood opposed to philosophy for the last 150 years. It would be silly to deny that there is a good point here, but equally silly to think that all consciousness is explicable in this way.
Related Idea
Idea 19745 The nature of people is decided by the government and politics of their society [Rousseau]