Who did Karl Marx believe would be the beneficiaries of socialism?

Karl Marx believed that the beneficiaries of socialism would be the workers. His theories centered around the idea that capitalism leads to the exploitation of the working class, whom he referred to as the proletariat. According to Marx, under capitalism, the owners of the means of production (the bourgeoisie) profit at the expense of workers, who sell their labor for wages that do not reflect the true value of their contributions.

Marx argued that socialism would arise as a response to this exploitation, leading to a system where the means of production are collectively owned or controlled by the workers. In this envisioned socialist society, the profits generated would be distributed more equitably among the workers rather than being concentrated in the hands of a few capitalists. Thus, the transformation from capitalism to socialism is meant to liberate workers from exploitation and provide them with a greater share of the wealth they produce, aligning closely with Marx's vision of a classless society.

In contrast, property owners, the government, and capitalists would not be the primary beneficiaries in Marx's view. He believed that socialism fundamentally aims to dismantle the existing power structures that favor these groups in order to empower the working class instead.