Communism (sympathetic)

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The following article attempts to describe communism from a sympathetic viewpoint. For an alternate view, see Communism (unsympathetic). You may edit and expand on either. Please do not alter an article simply because you disagree with it - improve the opposing article instead.

Communism is a theory and system of social and political organization with roots in traditional culture, religious community and utopian socialism. Communist practices include holding of land in common, cooperative living and working arrangements and equitable sharing of economic goods.

Communism is intended to be a classless society in which all property is owned by the community as a whole and where all people enjoy equal social and economic status. As a political movement, Communism, working through the agency of a highly centralized and disciplined political party, the "vanguard of the proletariat", promised to overthrow capitalism through a workers' revolution and redistribute the wealth into the hands of the proletariat, or working class.

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Communism through the ages

Communism existed since ancient times. Primitive humans, living in tribes, worked for the benefit of their entire clan and shared the fruits of their labor.

Many western intellectuals have advocated Communist ideas. In his 4th-century BC work The Republic, the Greek philosopher Plato proposed the communal ownership of property by an intellectual ruling class, to put the welfare of the state above personal desire and moderate the greed of the producing classes.

In 1534 John of Leyden turned the city of Munster into a commune called "New Jerusalem" in expectation of the Second Coming and introduced polygamy (going partway towards Plato's ideal) before the city was taken by a Catholic army, leading to a massacre. Thomas More's Utopia was organized along communist lines.

The idea floated around during the Enlightenment, exerting varying amounts of influence on the philosophes. The greatest amount was on Rousseau, who was to have the greatest influence on the French Revolution.

Many 19th Century idealists, disgusted by the ongoing oppression and decadence created by the Industrial Revolution, broke away from society to form communal utopias-although most were short-lived. An example was Robert Owen's New Harmony community in Indiana.

Many nations in the 20th century were run by such Communist Parties, who identified themselves as true communists implementing socialism, and attempted to govern themselves according to their interpretation of Marxist principles.

The Ideas of Marx and Engels

The ideas of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, published in their Communist Manifesto, helped to transform communism into a popular revolutionary movement. Marx and Engels claimed Communism did not have to occur in isolated communities, but globally. According to the Manifesto all history can be explained in terms of class struggles. In each society, a minority of people owned or controlled the means of production, constituting the ruling class. The vast majority of people owned and controlled very little.

At the current stage of capitalism the dominant bourgeoisie (or capitalists who controlled the means of production) exploited and oppressed the proletariat (or industrial workers) by paying low wages while keeping the profits to themselves. In other words, workers were compelled to labor not merely to meet their own needs but also those of the exploiting ruling class. Marx thought it was only a matter of time before the working classes of the world, realizing their common goals, would unite to overthrow the capitalists and redistribute the wealth. The establishment of communism would be the inevitable outcome of a historical process.

According to Marx, capitalism would evolve into socialism then eventually to communism. Marx specified a transitional period in which the workers would form a socialist society. A temporary dictatorship of the proletariat, would be needed to seize property from the bourgeoisie minority.

Marxists thus reserve the term communism only for the final evolutionary stage of society (see socialism). In Marxism, communism refers to the ideal stateless, propertyless, and classless society with no oppression or exploitation and general abundance and freedom. Society runs in accord with the principle: To each according to their needs, from each according to their ability. A common exemplification of the concept is "if a successful architect is single, he only needs one loaf of bread a day, and if a member of the proletariat has seven children with his wife, they need nine loaves of bread a day; neither have to pay for the bread at the baker's, and they both ask for exactly as much bread as they need -- the same applies for any other property, such as the apartment or the car".

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References

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