Stirner was one of the most promenent of the Young Hegalians. Coming towards the end of that movement, Stirner takes the movement to its logical extreme in "The Ego and His Own". It is an anarcho-existentialist position: all movements, including socialism, religion etc are oppressive and you should free yourself through indulgence and egoism. Some people feel Stirner influenced early Sartre. Others see a link to Foucault, Derrida and Deleuze.
The German Ideology was written by Marx & Engels in their early Brussels days (none of it was published until the '30s) criticizing a number of the Young Hegalians. The better written part attacks Feuerbach (especially the tacked on 'Theses on Feuerbach'); the part on Stirner is pretty turgid and is even left out of the "International Publishers" editions. Can't say I could recommend it.
Paul
Thomas S. writes:
>Johann Caspar Schmidt (whose nom de plume was Max
>Stirner) published a work "The Ego and His Own" which
>sent shockwaves throughout Europe in 1844. Marx wrote
>a huge book in response to Schmidt that was not
>published in his lifetime. Does anyone know if this
>is included in his collected works and, if so, what
>title does it go under?