Out of the darkness

Mary and Lizzy Burns, Engels’ partners in the genesis of scientific socialism

Abstract

This article elucidates the contributions of the two Burns sisters, Mary and Lydia (Lizzy), to the formation of the political and ideological consciousness of Friedrich Engels, one of the founders of so-called scientific socialism and the critique of political economy, developed with Karl Marx. In different stages of Engels’ life, both women were his partners, and in some respects strengthened his intellectual consolidation, though their contributions have not always been recognized by biographers and scholars of Engels’ works. The knowledge of these vital and ideological contributions obtained by examining secondary sources leads to the conclusion that both women played roles in the maturation of Engels’ thought from the outset and during a long period of his life.