dee-stroy

amodernmanifesto:

Socialism can be described as being about justice, equality, a better life. While this is generally true, these are the final outcomes of socialism and therefore it is not an accurate description of the Marxist concept of socialism. Marx was very specific when defining his concept of socialism. We should therefore start by saying what it is not.

Socialism is sometimes described as being an ideology. This is also inaccurate. For Marx, socialism is a mode of production that comes out of the womb of capitalism. It is an objective necessity arising from the contradiction between the relations of production and the productive forces. That is, a conflict that develops in order to free the progress and growth of the productive forces and make them compatible with the relations of production. This conflict exists under capitalism just as it did under other modes of production (slavery, feudalism). The development of technology is impeded by capitalism. The productive forces have been developed under the constraints of the division of labour which prevents their use to the fullest scale. Therefore in Marx’s time, as now, the conditions are ripe for socialism.

The final stage – the aim of socialism- is communism. This is how society will develop if capitalism does not lead to generalised barbarism. Socialism will come about through the development of consciousness and other factors. There will be no state, no repression and exploitation. Economic development will be on the basis of abundance but this must develop on a world scale. Capitalism has inflicted great harm, so socialism will take a long time to develop. Socialism is phase one of the new society created through working class revolution. The lack of development of the productive forces under capitalism has restricted people by allocating to them tasks according to the needs of that system. Socialism would free the worker from the straitjacket of the profit system. The aim of socialism is a classless society, i.e. communism. That is when work is done according to one’s ability and one can receive from society according to one’s needs.

Marx explained the transitional period between capitalism and socialism in the Grundrisse and the Critique of the Gotha Programme. The downfall of capitalism cannot immediately bring about socialism. This is due to the four main elements, i.e., the modes of production, distribution, exchange and consumption. These cannot be changed overnight. Certain elements will remain bourgeois in character, due to the legacy of capitalism.

For Marx, a specific type of state is needed to oversee the transitional period. That is the revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat. This is not a permanent type of state. It is simply to observe and implement the smooth and democratic transition to socialism. Its economic task is to rid society of the old mode of production in order to concentrate on the needs of society as a whole. That is to get consciously rid of the division between manual and intellectual labour. There will be a long process of education and preparation for workers’ management of the economy. Technocrats will remain in place to assist this process but the next generation of workers will be developed to run society. The defeat of the bourgeoisie must be guaranteed as they have shown themselves to be incapable of developing society further due to the exploitation of the working class. This is the task of the revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat. It will dissolve the instruments of oppression used by the bourgeois class.