Socialism

Dear readers, this week, we'll have a look at yet another political and economic ideology as well as a philosophy - socialism.

• Historically, we define it as a form of opposition to capitalism.

• Generally we may say that socialism strives to achieve a level of social equality, meaning that there shall be equal distribution of wealth, income and class.

The Origins of Socialism

• It is said to have originated in the 1800s, when there were many changes such as the rise of enlightenment or capitalism (resulting from the Industrial Revolution). The first people to use the term ‘socialist´ were Charles Fourier and Robert Owen (who we may call ‘Utopian socialists’).

• According to Owens the conditions of capitalism created lives of misery and suffering unworthy of rational beings - humans.

• Interestingly Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels were rather critical of the Utopian form of socialism. They claimed that socialism is a state of society that would naturally and inevitably replace capitalism. What this means is that the conditions for socialism would naturally occur in society over a period of time.

Core Ideas in Socialism

• The Marxist definition of socialism would be the common ownership of means of production. This, in comparison to the contemporary understanding of socialism, is a very limited definition.

Material Goods and their distribution

• Equitable distribution of goods as well as equality of resource distribution are crucial to socialism and directly oppose and critique capitalism.

Collectivism

• Unlike liberals and conservatives, socialists focus on collective action.

The State and Class

• The concept of statism was rather controversial within socialist ideology.

• Marx was not a statist. He believed that in a true communist/socialist society, the state no longer has to exist.

• However other socialist thinkers, for example Lenin, argue that the state is important for the maintenance and upholding of socialist ideals.

• According to socialists, the concept of class plays a central role in relations in society. They also claimed that the world has always worked based on Dialectical (opposing) Materialism. Eg.: slave vs slave owner, serf vs feudal lord, worker vs owner etc.

* Please note that at no point in this blog am I providing legal advice or claiming to be a professional. These blogs are for entertainment and educational purposes only.*