On Socialism

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On Socialism

• Ms Leslie
• History 12

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• Has never been a single movement
• Have the same core values but some ideas and
  political tactics will vary
• Has been around for thousands of years eg Jesus
  Christ, Platos republic

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Utopian Socialists

• France saw modern socialism developing in the
  late 17th century.
• People getting fed-up with the traditional way
  things are run.
• Start thinking of utopian ideals where everyone
  looks after each other. And theres less
  capitalist greed sucking profits out of workers

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• In Britain

Robert Owen (1771 - 1858) A capitalist who was
appalled at the working and living conditions
provided by other capitalists. Believed healthy
and happy workers were better for society and
profit. He built communities for his Scottish
workers, encouraged trade unions and fathered the
Co-operative movement, which encouraged workers
to improve their economic lot by fostering
education.
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Early Radicals

• Louis-Auguste Blanqui (1805-1881) an Atheist
  revolutionary who spent half his adult life in
  jail. Labeled his movement as communist. He
  felt that capitalism would eventually be replaced
  by co-operative associations and wanted to help
  move things along. His organization was tight,
  hierarchical and bent on seizing power for the
  working class. Some argue that Lenin was not a
  Blanquist then a Marxist.

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• Pierre- Joseph Proudhon (1807-1865) The father of
  Anarchism. Wanted to eliminate all institutions
  including private property (property was seen as
  theft). Opposed political parties, as they were
  authoritarian. His movement was as popular as
  Marxism and remained so in Spain until the
  1930s.

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Karl Marx 1818-1883

• His theories had 2 basic assumptions
• 1. Economics determine how all societies evolve.
  The key things to know about all societies were
  who owns the means of production and where were
  the production levels

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• 2. 1. Societies evolve. He developed clean
  stages of development by studying history.
• a. Primitive communist No rulers, few available
  goods shared. Low productivity.
• b. Society based on slavery. Classes are
  antagonistic to wards each other. Slaves work
  and have no rights. Government is formed.
• c. Feudal Society. Lords exploit and live off
  their peasants. Production is higher than
  previous forms of society

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• a. Capitalist Society. There are 2 major
  classes. Most of society was workers with a
  small percentage of society being capitalists who
  profit from the work of others. Capitalists are
  always trying to increase their profits at the
  expense of the workers who will be reduced to
  poverty and will ultimately fight back. First
  will come riots and strikes, then unionization
  and political parties, finally there would be
  revolution.

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• b. Socialism. Characterized by the dictatorship
  of the Proletariat, where the workers consolidate
  their power. State would control the means of
  production until class conflict was gone. After
  gaining power, the state would have to fight a
  counter-revolution by the deposed capitalists and
  neighbouring capitalist states.
• c. Communism. With class struggle gone, there
  would be no need for government. All ownership
  would be shared and when an increased level of
  production is reached, communism would be achieved

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• Marx felt that a socialist revolution would only
  happen in industrial countries, as it would be
  the workers who would seize power. These ideas
  were outline in his The Communist Manifesto,
  which he wrote with Friedrich Engels, and Das
  Capital. Marx was eventually exiled form Germany
  and had to live abroad. He was buried in London,
  England.

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Socialism After Marx

• Not much happening around the world
• In Germany Marxists started to interpret his
  teachings differently
• Believed society progressing naturally and didnt
  need to be pushed along.
• German Socialist Democratic Party believed
  capitalists and socialists could live together

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• WWI brought further division and the Party split
  into the radical Sparticist group and the KPD
  (German Comminist Party)

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Russian Socialists

• Some believed that Russia could skip the step of
  Capitalism and build socialism on peasant
  tradition.

But when Czar Alexander II was assassinated in
1881 the system did not collapse.
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• Gregory Plekhanov who placed his faith in the
  growing factory proletariat. He rejected the
  idea that Russia was different and sought to
  bring Russian Socialism closer to the rest of
  Socialism in Europe.
• This theory was refined further by none other
  than Vladimir Ilich Ulyanoc (1870-1924) better
  known as Lenin. He believed that one small group
  of professional revolutionaries was all that was
  needed to lead the masses into action.

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• In Russia, the Mensheviks attracted the educated
  class and skilled trade workers. The Bolsheviks
  attracted the less advanced elements. After the
  first revolution the Bolsheviks extended their
  organization to the urban masses as well.

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• By 1917, Lenin did not believe in waiting for
  revolution to come. He wanted to give history a
  push. He also believed that a German Revolution
  would follow a Russian Revolution.
• The End