democrats communism
Posted on: February 26, 2024 at 06:49:59 CT
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The Origin of Democratic Socialism
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Communism is a specific form of the broader philosophy of socialism. Communism is further left on the political spectrum than socialism. However, both communism and socialism share similar understandings of the relationships between economic structures and social conditions, and between the individual and the state. Although there are many versions of socialist philosophy, socialism generally retains private property ownership and calls for gradual political change. By contrast, communist theory holds that change will occur via a proletariat revolution that will abolish private property.
Communism originated with the German philosopher/intellectual Karl Marx (1818-1883). In 1848, he published The Communist Manifesto with Friedrich Engels (1820-1895). The Communist Manifesto argues that the story of history is the story of class struggle. Communism posits that industrial society is divided into two classes of people: the proletariat (workers) and the bourgeoisie (capitalists). The interests of the two classes are in conflict. The bourgeoisie, who own the factories and businesses, profit from the labor of the proletariat—at the proletariat’s expense. Moreover, the problems of industrial society, such as the poverty Engels described in The Condition of the English Working Class (1844), are inherent in capitalism. The powerful elites could not be expected to voluntarily give up control. Therefore, communists predicted that the collective struggle of the working class would lead to the proletariat revolution and the elimination of capitalism in favor of a classless society based on the principle of “From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.”
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United States Holocaust Memorial Museum