"The state is not abolished, it withers away"

This quote by Friedrich Engels is a referral to the Marxist theory of the state. According to this theory, the state is a tool of the gentility to maintain their power and control over the working class. Engels thought that the state would eventually "wither away" as the working class acquired more power and influence in society. This would lead to an egalitarian society where the state would no longer be needed. Engels believed that this process would be steady and would occur gradually. He argued that the state would not be eliminated, but rather it would become less and less needed as the working class got more power and influence. This quote is a pointer that the state is not a long-term component in society, but rather it is something that can and will alter with time.