Creating a Classless Society by Communism - Essay Example

282910 Topic: How far did communism manage to proceed along the road to a less society’? Introduction If we examine the pages of history, we observe that an individual has always been attracted by the lofty ideals of fraternity, equality and liberty. When these rights were denied to majority of the citizens, societies went through great convulsions. France faced a bloody revolution. In many European countries, the feudal systems were replaced by constitutional governments. Even the dictators paid lip service to democracy and used all sorts of undemocratic means to retain their seat of power. With the onset of industrial revolution, workers migrated from rural areas to towns and lived in a new set up. Gradually, the worker became a victim of injustice, harassment and exploitation. Protest movements originated. According to Karl Marx, a great social thinker and reformer, the root cause of exploitation is traced to private ownership of the means of production. If this ownership is transferred to State, exploitation will cease! When the exploiter class has been finally done with, with no chances of its rising to power again, the State will be replaced by a classless society. Since there is no private property in a communist state, the individual is reduced to a cog in the giant state wheel. The old exploiter has been removed and a new exploiter has taken over. In the name of defeating the counter-revolutionaries, the state apparatus becomes more and more totalitarian. The process of dehumanization of the individual gets accelerated. This has been the post-revolution picture in many communist countries. The so-called great ideals of classless society supposed to be achieved in a perfect state of communism, have proved to be mirage. Those who still swear by the communist ideology, amidst its failures in many countries, do so for their political advantage, and not with the passion for the welfare of the workers. They are just beating the dead corpse. “The Pope calls Marxist ideology inhumane and essentially impossible, he recalls that history has confirmed his position towards Marxism to be correct. The “illusion” of a classless society, Pope Benedict XVI says, “has vanished”. Instead of Communist political maximalism the Pope suggests patient charitable and spiritual activity to fight for more justice in the world.” (O’Brien et. el, 2006) None can deny that Communist rulers are to be blamed for some of the heinous crimes recorded in the human history. Marxist teachings validate such crimes. The concept of classless society, though it has remained as an unattainable dream so far, the positive effects of its propagation from various political platforms, has kept the issue of securing social justice for citizens, a burning issue. The road-blocks faced by the communists in achieving a classless society: Mostly, communism is synonymous with the communist regime in Russia. After the events in Hungary, Poland and Eastern Germany, it had to face severe condemnation for abuse of the State Power in its dictatorial form. “In a letter to Weydemeyer (March 5, 1852) quoted by Lenin in State and Revolution, Marx wrote that the existence of classes wasnt discovered by him but by bourgeois economists and historians. It was other people who discovered Class struggles as well, which doesnt mean they were communist or revolutionary. The content of his doctrine, he said, resides in the historical concept of the dictatorship of the proletariat as a necessary stage in the transition from capitalism to socialism.” (Fundamentals of….) The classless society as envisaged by Marx about 150 years ago, and as interpreted by the followers of communism, varies much. “Marx’s teachings are the theoretical expression of the real struggle which was going on in his day and is going on now in capitalist society with its anarchic mode of production, that struggle between those who possess and those who do not possess, between the capitalists and the wage-workers.” (Reid, 1932) According to Marx, politics, science, art religion etc. are the consequential needs of the human beings. The needs priority-wise are eat, drink, live and clothe. The essence and spirit of class struggle lies in the process to achieve these fundamental requirements. The classless society as envisaged by the subsequent thinkers/politicians related to the communist movement is in great variance to what Marx propounded. Many movements and states fall under the revised version of rubric of communism. What Marx wrote was influenced by German philosophical traditions. Marx did not mention about party of intellectuals who can estimate about the true interests of the workers, better than the workers themselves. This thought process emerged from Lenin’s mind. Knowing that communism has the history of over 150 ears, and yet proper assessment as to how to achieve a ‘classless society’ continues to be heard from various discussion forums. Whether it is ever possible to achieve such an ideal state, or whether that position is ideal at all—history has yet to produce tangible answers. Communism continues to limp, and has reached a directionless and destination less stage. “Through all the ravages done in his name, Marx would have clung to one thought, now a twentieth-century political cliché: the end justifies the means. The terrible history of Marxism in the twentieth century would, in its creator’s view, have been justified if from it had emerged the kind of society he envisaged: one with no classes, no exploiters or exploited, no bureaucracy, and no ‘political’, as opposed to civil, society.” (Harvey, 2004, p, 23) Communism as propounded by Marx, and the communism as it is practiced today in some of the so-called communist countries, are poles apart. At the ideal level countries practicing the same ideology, i.e. communism should have no differences of opinions and they all must work in an identical style to achieve the goal of classless society. In reality, they have serious conflicts within themselves. Marx propounded an internationalist doctrine (Workers of the world unite!). Now it has been compressed into a form of Nationalism. The philosophy of Communism is being tossed like the rubber ball, with all sorts of interpretations, and as far as the present indications go, with distortions becoming more and more complicated, the goal of welfare of workers, is lost sight of. Some writers describe intelligentsia as an example of classlessness, for they owe no allegiance to any particular class and can make proper, unbiased assessment about the needs of the society. They do not side with the upper-class! What have been the scenes in the road to ‘classless society?’ Nightmares comparable to the Holocaust, slaughter in World War I. Heartless leaders presided over the destiny of people, promising them paradise, but in reality they underwent untold miseries, grinding poverty, and servitude comparable to the period of slavery of the black race in USA. In the alleged cause of economic progress, thousands were murdered and big chunks of people were imprisoned. The so-called revolutionary forces invaded countries, the pampered military machine ruled at will, and the threats of nuclear annihilation often subdued the psyche of the less powerful Nations. The experience of the last 3-4 decades in many countries of the world reveals the obvious. It is easy to fan the wild sentiments of the workers in the name of achieving a classless society. To ignite the fire of revolution is much easier than to maintain that fire in the hearts and minds of the people. In the 1970s South Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia fell to the forces of Marxism-Leninism and it seemed the successful march of communism was unstoppable. Within two decades, the paradise of the workers stood devastated, with an estimated 100 million dead, with terrible economic disasters. Except an autocratic regime, no traits of communism are seen even in China, and it continues to encourage free enterprise. Marx had predicted that the developed countries groaning under the injustices of parasitic middle class are the ideal hunting grounds for the communism to thrive. But it actually established itself in countries emancipated from feudalism or colonialism, which embraced twentieth century modernism. What Marx visualized did not happen, and the so-called communist leaders interpreted the philosophy as per their political needs, bent upon occupying their powerful political chairs. The descent of communism was faster than its ascent. The total collapse happened with startling suddenness. The workers who were supposed to be the main beneficiaries became the most demoralized lot in communist countries, once their life stood engulfed in the newfound philosophy. They felt betrayed by revolution. “It is true that the promises made before a revolution, and the illusions of the participants, are usually proved false. But if we conceive of revolutions as phases of changes which make way for a new distribution of social, political and economic power, the periods of excitement will be limited. A radical aim cannot dominate the scene to the exclusion of all others. Conditions must "settle down" as they usually do, and even if the state of revolution is officially declared to continue, it is no longer the masses that are behind the important decisions, but the new social setup.”(Lederer, 1940, p, 174) Conclusion: The vision of classless society promised to the workers is extraordinary. A self-managed society, where means of production and distribution are collectively owned! No value production but well-being of humanity is the main concern. System of wage-labour stands abolished. Work and productivity will not be sold to an employer as a commodity. No state, no managers and no organisation are superior to that of workers’ self-management. Belief in internationalism! To work in collaboration with communists in other countries! Work for solidarity with workers’ organisations all over the world. No borders and immigration controls. No oppression in the name of nationality. Not one of the above propositions could be translated to achieve the goal of classless society. The concept of workers managing the economy proved false. One set of managers replaced another and the conditions of the workers turned from bad to worse. Self-management and collective ownerships, proved unattainable. The road to a classless society has reached the dead end! =============== Works Cited: Fundamentals of revolutionary communism – 1957: Retrieved on March 23, 2009 Harvey, Robert: Book:A Short History of Communism Hardcover: 480 pages Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books (October 21, 2004) Language: English ISBN-10: 0312329091 ASIN: B000KHXCF8 Lederer, Emil: Book: State of the Masses: The Threat of the Classless Society. Publisher: W.W. Norton & Co. Place of Publication: New York. Publication Year: 1940 Page Number: 174. Retrieved on March 23, 2009 O’ Brien, Conan (Author) Stewart John (Author) Article: Onslaught on the Ideology of Communism, January 27, 2006. The Trans Atlantic Assembly: 01/01/2006 - 02/01/2006. transatlanticassembly.blogspot.com/2006_01_01_archive.html - 141k - Reid, Brain: Article: Marxism Versus Social DemocracyKarl Marx, originator of Communism, founder and leader of the International ... Address delivered at Plenum Executive Committee of the Young Communist International Written: December 1932; Source: Workers Library Publishers, New York, 1932. Read More