Fundamentalist Marxism

Question 1

Human Nature

Answer 1

• Exploitative.
• Humans are historically systemic - holds the capacity for fraternity and comradeship

Question 2

Engles and Marx on HN

Answer 2

• Capitalism contaminates human nature, encouraging selfishness, ruthlessness and greed as it instilled in mankind a ‘false consciousness’ of bourgeois values.
• Argued a new, non-capitalist economy would revive their noble characteristics (cooperative, fraternal and selfless).

Question 3

Luxembourg on HN

Answer 3

Accepted Marx’s argument that capitalism promoted exploitation and that it was at odds with humanity’s natural, fraternal instincts.

Question 4

State

Answer 4

• Revolution must occur for a new economy and state as these liberal states were servants of the same economic system which socialism aims to destroy.
• Must intervene to control the means of production to prevent exploitation of a social class to create equality of opportunity and outcome.
• A dictatorship of the proletariat would obliterate all traces of liberal-capitalist values and pave the way for a stateless, communist society based on common ownership - represent the ‘end of history’.

Question 5

Marx and Engles on the State

Answer 5

• Challenged the liberal notion of a politically neutral state , stating it was ‘ a committee’ for the ruling capitalist class which could never provide a revolutionary route to socialism.
• Revolution was inevitable = govern the new, economically dominant class, until it eventually withers away.
• Replaced by communism, involving common ownership and ‘from each according to his ability to each according to his needs’.

Question 6

Luxembourg on the State

Answer 6

• Argued differently on how revolution should arise and be conducted.
• Disagreed it only occurs via the vanguard elite’s planning, but envisaged revolution arising spontaneously through class consciousness - brought about by the proletariat’s ongoing battle for progress in the workforce.
• Rejected the dictatorship of the proletariat - advocated for the immediate construction of a new democracy, underpinned by common ownership, open debate and elections.
• A softer, attractive approach for Proletariat voters.

Question 7

Economy

Answer 7

• Abolish captalism and private ownership as it otherwise promotes competition, alienation and economic exploitation of one class by another (opposes equality).
• Because of this, capitalism was historically doomed as the proletariat would recognise this class consciousness.
• Replaces it with communism - state ownership of the means of production to create an eglatarian society.

Question 8

Engles and Marx on Economy

Answer 8

• Capitalism sought to be competitive, creating such surplus value where employers paid employees minimum wages.
• Condemned capitalism = a consequence was the exploitation of the proletariat, as the bourgeoisie has the incentive to extract the maximum surplus values from their workers.
• Provides the ‘seeds of its own destruction’ by nurturing resentful class consciousness among workers - eventually overthrown by revolution.

Question 9

Luxembourg on Economy

Answer 9

• Capitalism must collapse due to its inability to absorb the surplus value it created - needs to expand or die which even imperial expansion cannot accommodate long-term.
• Believed class consciousness must be developed to overthrow and replace the system, requiring determination and solidarity among the proletariat.
• Social revolution should be more than a form of national regime change - a revolt against capitalism and nationalism globally.

Question 10

Society

Answer 10

• Aimed for equality of outcome, removal of classes in society and abolishment of the bourgeoisie (the ruling elite).
• Believed that revolution is required to obtain this by breaking the class consciousness.

Question 11

Engles and Marx on Society

Answer 11

• Independent construct, formed by economic forces with the means of production (how its distributed and determined).
• Two conflicted classes (bourgeoisie and proletariat) but class differences weren’t harmonious = involved harsh wealth and power inequalities and the exploitation of the proletariat.
• Therefore, unstable capitalist societies would be overthrown by a ‘historically inevitable’ proletariat revolution.

Question 12

Luxembourg on Society

Answer 12

• Capitalist society is class-ridden and morally indefensible, yet alternate societies exist within downtrodden proletarian communities. For socialism to be built, a mass movement was required to prepare the working class to be ‘free and independent directors of society’.
• Disagreed with Marx’s historicism that capitalism must reach an advanced stage of development before a revolution - unacceptable that less developed countries must endure decades of oppressive rule, plus the horrors of a developing capitalist economy, before the salvation of socialism arrives.