Socialism

Question 1

What are the 5 key principles of socialism?

Answer 1

• Collectivism
• Common humanity
• Equality
• Social class
• Workers control

Question 2

What is collectivism?

Answer 2

• Idea that human society will be strongest when there is collective action towards a common goal
• Politics, economics and social reform should all be for the community over individual
• EVeryone equally owns the means of production

Question 3

Describe the concept of common humanity

Answer 3

Humans are natural social beings and capitalism has led to alienation from these natural tendencies due to encouraging competition

Question 4

What do socialists think about equality?

Answer 4

• Believe that people are not born equal and that society and the state must rectify these inequalities
• Want either absolute equality or equality of welfare and outcome

Question 5

How does social class contribute to socialist ideology?

Answer 5

• Believe that divisions into social class defines society and that they determine how people live every aspect of their life over anything else
• State the upper classes (bourgeoisie) benefit from the exploitation of the working class (proletariat)

Question 6

What is workers’ control?

Answer 6

• Socialist believe that those produce capital should control the mean of production
• The state should be governed by workers

Question 7

What are the four branches of socialism?

Answer 7

• Revolutionary socialism - Marxist socialists
• Democratic socialism
• Social democracy
• Third way

Question 8

What is each branch of socialism view of the state?

Answer 8

• Rev. Soc - the state should wither away one a socialist society based upon common humanity and collectivism is established (Marx). Change comes about through revolution by workers
• Dem. Soc - the state should be run by an elite class of socialists who ensure that collectivism and nationalisation succeeds (Webb)
• Soc. Dem - the state should work to introduce welfare to reduce the inequalities produced by the capitalist aspects of a mixed economy
• Third Way - power is devolved to smaller bodies, greater emphasis on people and their responsibilities (active citizenship)

Question 9

State each branches’ view on the economy

Answer 9

• Rev. Soc - abolition of capitalism as it leads to alienation from true human social tendencies and introduction of workers’ control
• Dem. Soc - abolition of capitalism must happen, but through democratic means and then a controlled socialist economy
• Soc. Dem - use of a mixed economy with Keynesian economics
• Third Way - neo-liberal economics combined with some state welfare (‘hand up not hand out’/’help people to help themselves’)

Question 10

What type of equality does each branch of socialism desire to achieve?

Answer 10

• Rev. Soc - absolute equality + equality of outcome
• Dem. Soc - equality of outcome
• Soc. Dem - equality of outcome/equality of welfare
• Third Way - equality of opportunity

Question 11

Describe the opinions of society that each branch of socialism holds

Answer 11

• Rev. Soc - society should be classless
• Dem. Soc - elite socialist class who carry about socialist agenda
• Soc. Dem - the class system is complex and many don’t fit into is
• Third Way - socialism has to work with growing middle class

Question 12

KEY THINKER
Karl Marx (1818 - 83)
What were Marx’s two key ideas?

Answer 12

• Social class is central to socialism

* Human nature is socially determined and can only be expressed under communism

Question 13

KEY THINKER 
Karl Marx (1818 - 83)
Elaborate on Marx's view of social class

Answer 13

• Contributes to historical materialism - states that social class can be used to explain historical/social change throughout history
• The division of society into classes drives dialectic change when the working classes/proletariat struggling against the upper classes/bourgeoisie and once the proletariat gains class consciousness they will have a revolution to end capitalism

Question 14

KEY THINKER
Karl Marx (1818 - 83)
What was Marx’s view of human nature?

Answer 14

• It is socially determined with nurture over nature
• People are sociable, rational and cooperative
• Capitalism leads to alienation for workers from their true self due to the culture/creation of competition and that communism would end this through allowing for more creative work and leisure time

Question 15

KEY THINKER
Beatrice Webb (1858 - 1943)
What were Webb’s key ideas?

Answer 15

• ‘The inevitability of gradualness’ and that socialism can be introduced peacefully through parliamentary/democratic means
• That state expansion will produce socialism

Question 16

KEY THINKER
Beatrice Webb (1858 - 1943)
Why did Webb oppose Marx’s idea of revolution to achieve socialism?

Answer 16

• Believed that workers were selfish and uninformed on how to run a state and that democracy should be representative
• Said state expansion would lead to the ‘economic side of socialism’ being achieved with growth in power and reform leading to a socialist state

Question 17

KEY THINKER
Rosa Luxemburg (1871 - 1919)
What were Luxemburg’s key socialist ideas?

Answer 17

• Evolutionary socialism isn’t possible due to that fact capitalism is based on the exploitation and suppression of workers
• Struggle by the proletariat creates the class consciousness needed to overthrow the capitalist state

Question 18

KEY THINKER 
Rosa Luxemburg (1871 - 1919) 
Why did Luxemburg think that class consciousness would provide a socialist society?

Answer 18

Stated that it would develop as workers recognised their oppression and alienation and this would lead to strikes and eventually a revolution that would end capitalism

Question 19

KEY THINKER
Antony Crossland (1918 - 77)
What were Crossland’s key ideas?

Answer 19

• The inherent contradictions of capitalism

* State managed capitalism

Question 20

KEY THINKER
Antony Crossland (1918 - 77)
What are the inherent contradictions of capitalism?

Answer 20

• Crossland stated that capitalism hadn’t developed as Marx had predicted and that it now lacked the contradictions (e.g class conflict) he stated were required to inspire revolution

Question 21

KEY THINKER
Antony Crossland (1918 - 77)
How did Crossland believe socialism could manage capitalism?

Answer 21

• Keynesian economics which ensures low inflation and continual growth but large welfare spending to ensure an egalitarian society
• Nationalisation of key industries
• Economic expansion required to fund welfare/social spending to improve living standards for those at the bottom of society

Question 22

KEY THINKER
Anthony Giddens (1938 - )
What are Giddens’ key ideas?

Answer 22

• The third way - a new political approach to social democracy
• The rejections of state intervention

Question 23

KEY THINKER
Anthony Giddens (1938 - )
What were Giddens desires for the third way?

Answer 23

• To combine social democracy and neo-liberal economics whilst avoiding the weakness of both
• The rejections of state intervention and the acceptance of the free market with emphasis on equality of opportunity and community
• That notions of community and responsibility would counteract the materialism and competitive individualism of the free market
• End the dependency culture that had been created

Question 24

KEY THINKER
Anthony Giddens (1938 - )
What were Giddens’ justifications for the need for the third way?

Answer 24

• Globalisation had changed the nature of social democracy and top-down state intervention was ineffective and inefficient compared to the free market
• There would remain a need for government intervention to tackle the inevitable social inequality within society

Question 25

KEY THINKER
Anthony Giddens (1938 - )
What did Giddens envision for the state?

Answer 25

• A social investment state, where the state benefitting from free-market economic growth would reinvest back into infrastructure of society (education, training, subsidised employment)