SOCİALİSM

Origins and DevelopmentThe term socialism means to combine or share.By the early 1830’s the followers of Robert Owen in Britain and Saint Simon in France has began to refer their beliefs as socialism.

• Socialism as a reaction against the social and economic conditions in Europe by the growth of industrial capitalism

• Socialism emerged as a criticique of liberal market society and offered an alternative to industrial capitalism.

• Early socialism influenced by the harsh and inhuman conditions of industrial working class.

• Karl Marx as a journalist at that time developed more complex and systematic theories and asserted that revolutionary overthrow of capitalism was inevitable.

• In the late 20’th century the growth of trade unions, working class political parties, sports and social clubs provided greater economic security and integrated working class into industrial society.

• After the Russion Revolution of 1917 revolutionary Socialists began to be known as ‘communist’ while reformist socialists retained the name ‘ socialist’ or ‘social democrat’.

• In 20’th century, spread of socialms into African, Asian and Latin American countries with no experience with industrial capitalism together with

• anti-colonial struggles rather than class struggles• Fusion of socialism and nationalism

Central Themes of Socialism• Different meanings of the term socialism

1. As an economic model linked to some form of social collectivization and planning. 2. As an instrument of the labour movement, as an alternative to capitalism represents the working class and offers a programme through which the workers can acquire political end economic power. 3. As a political creed, or ideology, characterised by a particular cluster of ideas, values and theories: community, cooperation, equality, social class, common ownership

Community• Socialism has got a collectivist vision• Socialism stresses the capacity of human beings for

collective action• Ability to pursue goals by working together as

opposed to striving for personel self-interest. • For socialists human nature is something changeable

by the experiences and circumstances of social life.• In contrast to liberals for socialists human beings are

neither self-sufficient, nor self -contained individuals. Individuals can only be understood through the social groups to which they belong.

Cooperation

• Socialist believe that the natural relationship amongst the people is cooperation rather than competition.

• Human beings can be motivated by moral incentives not merely by material incentives.

• Marx: “From each according to his ability and to each according to his needs”.

Equality

• Social equality or equaltiy of outcome because Social equality upholds justice or fairness: People are not born identical bu they posses the same capacities and skills.

• Social equality underpins community and cooperation whereas social inequality fosters class conflict.

• Since all people have similar needs, distributing wealth on the basis of need-satisfaction has an egalitarian principle.

Social Class

• Social class refers to groups of people who share a similar social and economic position.

• For socialists social classes rather than individuals are the principle actors in history.

• In the Marxist tradition class is linked to economic power, as defined by the individual’s relationship to the means of the production.

• So, the class divisons are divisons between ‘labour’ and ‘capital’

Common Ownership• The origins of competition and inequality lies in the

institution of private property.• Socialists criticise private property, because:

1. Property is unjust, wealth is produced by the collective effort of human labour and should therefore be owned by the community.2. Property is morally corrupting, Private property encourages people to be materialistic. 3. Property is divisive: it fosters conflict in society.. Between owners and workers, oremployers and employees, or rich and poor…

MarxismMarxism as a codified body of thought only came into

existence after Marx’s death in 1883. Classical Marxism: • It is a philosophy of history that outlines why capitalism

isdoomed and why socialism is destined to replace it.• Marx: ‘The philosophers have only interpreted the

world, in various ways; the point is to change it.’• Unity of theory and practice in Marx. • Rejecting Hegel’s idealism, materialist conception of

history.

• Since human cannot survive without food, water, shelter and so on, the way in which these are produced conditions all other aspects of life

• ‘Social being determines consciousness’• Social consciousness and ‘the legal and political

structure’ arise from the ‘economic base’. • Driving force of historical change is the dialectic,

aprocess of interaction between competing forces that leads to a higher stage of development.

• Marx explained historical change by reference to internal contradictions within each mode of production arising from the existence of private property.

• Human history as a long story between the oppresser and the oppressed. , the exploiter and the exploited.

• Alienation: Capitalism has seperated people from their genuine or essential natures, from their capacity as workers to develop skills, talents and understanding through the experience of free productive labour.