Historical materialism is a methodological approach to the study of society, politics, and history, primarily associated with Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. It provides a framework to understand the development of human societies through the lens of material conditions rather than ideas or ideals alone. According to historical materialism, the material or economic base of society, which consists of the forces and relations of production, fundamentally shapes its social, political, and ideological superstructure. In simpler terms, the way people produce and distribute resources in a society largely determines the organization of social institutions, laws, politics, and even culture. The concept of historical materialism rests on the principle that history progresses through a series of stages characterized by distinct modes of production. Each mode of production—such as primitive communism, slavery, feudalism, capitalism, and potentially socialism—has its own set of productive forces and social relations. The productive forces include tools, technology, labor, and skills, while the social relations of production refer to the relationships between individuals and classes involved in economic activity. Conflict between the productive forces and the existing relations of production creates social