Socialism Flashcards
Meaning of fraternity?
The sharing of common interests , everyone is tightly knitted like brothers
What are the three groups of socialism?
- Revolutionary Socialists
- Social democrats
- Third way socialists
Who are the thinkers for Revolutionary socialists?
- Marx
- Engels
- Luxemburg
Who is the thinker for the Social Democrats?
-Anthony Crossland
Who is the thinker for Third Way Socialism?
- Anthony Giddens
Revolutionary socialists view on human nature ?
- generally good, co-operative and empathetic.
- It can be can be moulded by the society around them
- capitalism can cause it to become become greedy
Revolutionary socialists view on the state?
- state should be abolished as it was the tool of the bourgeoisie
- socialist state needs to be implemented in order to promote social justice and the redistribution of wealth
Revolutionary socialists view on society?
- a classless society where there is full equality is desirable
- existing society is so ‘sick’ that a revolution can provide the necessary ‘shock therapy’
Revolutionary socialists view on the economy?
- aim for the total abolition of capitalism
- want redistribution of wealth
Social democrats view on human nature?
- humanity can become a cooperative fraternal condition
Social democrats view on the state?
- socialist parties should campaign peacefully
- Social democracy believes in capitalism with a strong interventionist state
Social democrats view on economy?
- capitalism can stay with a strong interventionists state
- capitalism is the best state to generate wealth
- They are critical of the inequalities caused by free market capitalism but also accept capitalism as being the best way to generate wealth
Third way view on human nature?
- humans are naturally inclined towards fairness
- humans require cohesive society
nature can prosper under capitalism
Third way view of the state?
- rejected state intervention
- role of state to be toward social investment
- less bloating of welfare state
- state can be reformed to produce greater political equality
Third way view of society?
- rejected class conflict
- wanted equality emerged with capitalism
Third way view of economy?
- accepted/ encourages capitalism
- the wealth from capitalism and free market would be put into social investments
What is historical materialism?
At first there were primitive societies, the economic system of capitalism manifested and class consciousness and the proletariat eventually rise up and revolt.
The proletariat eventually destroy capitalism
Why did Marx think revolution was inevitable?
Believed that revolution was inevitable as the conditions of capitalism will create class consciousness
Why did Webb not believe in revolution
She feared that revolution would only cause more chaos and make human nature even worse
What is the ‘inevitability of gradualism’
Webb believed that it was inevitable because working class people would vote for socialist parties and this would lead to those socialist parties reforming the state which would lead to more votes as humans would see the benefits
How did Luxemburg disagree with Marx about revolution?
Luxemburg disagreed with Marx that we had to wait for revolution, capitalism could be destroyed and abolished much earlier
Why did Anthony Crossland think capitalism had changed?
Crosland believed capitalism was no longer an evil oppressive system as the post war reforms of Labour had changed it for the better. Therefore there was no need to abolish capitalism
Define collectivism
Collectivism implies cooperation with others with others rather than competitive individual self striving. It leads to cooperation and prevents conflict and aggression that is caused by self striving.
Why are all socialists egalitarians?
They believe in equality is the core principle and it is an aspect of our human nature.
Which socialist strand does not use the language of class at all
Third Way
Define communism
An economic system in which the means of production are owned by the common rather than the individuals. Also social class and inequality are abolished
Why did the consequence of revolutionary socialist prove disappointing for many socialists
Marx’s ideas
Define class consciousness
The Marxist idea that the proletariat would become aware of their economic position in society and join others to form a mass revolutionary movement
What theory did Luxembourg develop?
Revolutionary mass action- she believed that the organisation is the class struggle had to come from below and show be a spontaneous uprising of the proletariat
What is revisionist stand of socialism
Social democracy and the Third Way
Why do social democrats accept capitalism?
best way of creating large amounts of wealth.
How do the social democrats ensure there is social justice ?
progressive taxation, welfare and redistribution, mixed economies
Social democrats are also called revisionists sometimes why?
They rejected revolution as violent and unnecessary at a time when the franchise was being extended and capitalism had proved to be more complex. Reformism implies gradual and peaceful change
What 4 types of socialist are there?
Revolutionary/Evolutionary, Revisionist/Fundamentalist
What is Marx and Engels’ view on Human nature?
It has been contaminated by capitalism instilling a false consciousness of bourgeoise values
What is Luxemburg’s view on human nature?
Fraternity and altruism flourish in socialist communities punished by capitalist economies
What is Beatrice Webb’s view on human nature?
Only violent revolution can truly show the damage that capitalism has conflicted on the soul
What is Anthony Crosland’s view on human nature?
Sense of fairness and objection to inequality of outcome
What is Anthony Gidden’s view on human nature?
Human nature has been shaped by changing socio-economic factors
Who states that the state ‘is a capitalist tool and must be destroyed by revolution’?
Marx and Engels
Who states that the state ‘if harnessed to universal suffrage could be used to effect a gradual change to socialism’?
Beatrice Webb
Who states that the state ‘should be improved by redistribution and decentralisation of political power whilst encouraging greater political participation’?
Anthony Giddens
Who states that the state ‘must be crushed by revolution arising from strike action and not class consciousness’?
Rosa Luxemburg
Who states that the ‘existing state can be used to exert radical, socialist change’
Antony Crosland
What is Marx and Engels’ view on the economy?
Capitalism = corrupt, inefficient, self-destructive
What is Luxemburg’s theory on the economy?
Capitalism’s necessary destruction is through the replacement of the economy based on worker’s control
What is Webb’s view on the economy?
A capitalist society will be replaced by one for the benefit of the workers based on common ownership
What is Anthony Gidden’s view on the economy?
He wants a ‘mixed economy underpinned by limited public ownership and Keynesian ethics’
What is Crosland’s view on the economy?
Neoliberal economy propelled by privatisation and deregulation
Who states that society is ‘defined by class interests and class conflict which is bad’?
Marx and Engels
Who states that society is ‘increasingly complex, altered by the emergence of new social groups’
Anthony Crosland
Who states that in society, ‘poverty and inequality in a capitalist society continue to depress human potential whilst fostering regressive competition’?
Beatrice Webb
Who states that ‘capitalist society is class ridden and indefensible yet they still exist in downtrodden socialist societies’
Luxemburg
What is collectivism?
An idea that covers how collective human effort is both of greater practical value to the economy and moral value to society than the efforts of the individuals
What is a common humanity?
The idea that humans are social creatures with a tendency to co-operation, sociability and rationality and an individual cannot be understood without reference to society
Why is equality a fundamental socialist principle?
Covers the disagreements among socialists about the nature of equality and how it is critical to the state, society, human nature and economy
Why is social class a fundamental principle of socialism?
As a group of people in society with the same socioeconomical status will cover the extent to which class impacts on socialists’ views of society, the state and the economy
Why is important for worker’s control within socialism?
As they are the importance of the extent of the economy and how it is to be achieved
What is Fraternity?
The idea that the relationship between human beings should be marked by generosity, warmth and comradeship
What is social justice?
Legal justice isn’t always enough - justice should involve healthcare, education, minimum wage etc…
What is common ownership?
The idea that is against private ownership and moves toward a more collective approach
For socialists, what forms collectivism take place within the economy?
Progressive taxation Progressive public spending Extensive public services Extensive state regulation of capitalism State/common ownership
What do socialists wish to do with wealth?
Redistribute it
What is the key principal of revolutionary socialism?
That socialism can only be brought in with the revolutionary overthrow of existing political and social structures
Which Key thinkers are revolutionary socialists?
Marx and Engels
Luxemburg
What is a fundamentalist socialist and how do they differ?
Fundamentalist socialists believe that capitalism at some point needs to be abolished, however revolutionary socialists believe that this needs to be done through revolution. You can have fundamentalist revolutionary socialists as well as fundamentalist evolutionary socialists.
Who is an evolutionary socialist?
Beatrice Webb
What is dialectic change?
Refers to the clashes and stages that will inevitably take place within each ‘stage’ of history and which eventually leads to the disappearance of existing society
What does democratic socialism aim to do in accordance to capitalism?
Humanise it in the interests of social justice
At what pace would earlier democratic socialist governments transform society?
a gradual pace
What would parties do whilst campaigning to show that gradualism is inevitable?
Campaign peacefully and gradually win the trust and attention of voters
What would the majority of voters feels to show that gradualism is inevitable?
The working class would become disillusioned with capitalism and realise they had no interest in it
Who would voters inevitably elect to show that gradualism is inevitable?
Socialist governments
Who would oversee replacement of private industry and how quickly would this occur to show that gradualism is inevitable?
Democratic socialist governments
Gradually
What would voters recognise with he socialist governments?
That they worked and the progress they make, re-electing them in again
Who is an important democratic socialist?
Beatrice Webb
What type of socialists are Third Way socialists?
Evolutionary, Revisionist socialists
Which Key thinker represents the Third Way?
Anthony Giddens
What does the third way aim to do?
Reconcile socialism with a capitalist economy that was more neo-liberal
What is the most controversial aspect of third way revisionism?
Its revised attitude to equality of outcome
Who led the movement of Third Way socialism in national politics?
Blair
What showed a robust example of third way triangulation under New Labour?
- Stewardship of the economy
- Deregulation of banks and other financial services
- Steep increases in public spending
Which social reforms showed the Third Way of labour under Blair?
Devolution
HRA
Civil partnerships for homosexuals
