Socialism

Socialism

1. SOCIALISM FEBINA V RAHOOF

2. INTRODUCTION Central to the meaning of socialism is  common ownership . This means the resources of the world being owned in common by the entire global population. But does it really make sense for everybody to own everything in common? Of course, some goods tend to be for personal consumption, rather than to share. People 'owning' certain personal possessions does not contradict the principle of a society based upon common ownership. Then what does socialism mean for?

3. Socialism A political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.

4. Socialism is a social and economic system characterised by social ownership and democratic control of the means of production as well as a political theory and  movement that aims at the establishment of such a system

5. Democratic control Democratic control is essential to the meaning of socialism. Socialism will be a society in which everybody will have the right to participate in the social decisions that affect them. These decisions could be on a wide range of issues—one of the most important kinds of decision, for example, would be how to organize the production of goods and services.

6. Production Production under socialism would be directly and solely for use. With the natural and technical resources of the world held in common and controlled democratically, the sole object of production would be to meet human needs. This would entail an end to buying, selling and money. Instead, we would take freely what we had communally produced. The old slogan of "from each according to ability, to each according to needs" would apply.

7. Socialism’s emergence Liberal political parties in 19 th century Europe failed to address the desperate needs of working people. Classical liberalism views poverty as an individual choice or failure, not the result of social structures. Also suspicious of big government. Socialism provides a different conception of individual responsibility & of government

8. Labour Party In England, socialism became a political movement in 1884, with the creation of the Fabians, who provided the basis for the new Labour Party

9. Socialism’s principles Egalitarianism or equality.  Humankind will be unified and cooperative, once wealth is owned and used for the common good. Capitalism exploits the very people who create society’s wealth. Moralism. Division of rich & poor is evil; capitalism is fundamentally unjust. Instead, the ideal future emphasizes peace, social justice and true liberty for all. 

10. Social democracy A variation on socialism that argues that socialism and democracy can work together. Example: British Labour Party. Change comes through peaceful democratic processes like elections. Democratic governments should promote economic - as well as political - freedom & equality.

11. The Early Theorists Socialism arose in the late 18th and early 19th cent. as a reaction to the economic and social changes associated with the Industrial Revolution. While rapid wealth came to the factory owners, the workers became increasingly impoverished. As this capitalist industrial system spread, reactions in the form of socialist thought increased proportionately. Although many thinkers in the past expressed ideas that were similar to later socialism, the first theorist who may properly be called socialist was Francois Noel Babeuf, who came to prominence during the French Revolution. Babeuf propounded the doctrine of class war between capital and labor later to be seen in Marxism.

12. Socialist writers who followed Babeuf, however, were more moderate. Known as "utopian socialists," they included the comte de Saint-Simon Charles Fourier, and Robert Owen

13. Comte de Saint-Simon Saint-Simon proposed that production and distribution be carried out by the state. The leaders of society would be industrialists who would found a national community based upon cooperation and who would eliminate the poverty of the lowest classes.

14. Charles Fourier, and Robert Owen. . Fourier and Owen, though differing in many respects, both believed that social organization should be based on small local collective communities rather than the large centralist state of Saint-Simon. All these men agreed, however, that there should be cooperation rather than competition, and they implicitly rejected class struggle.

15. LOUIS BLANC Following the utopians came thinkers such as Louis Blanc who were more political in their socialist formulations. Blanc put forward a system of social workshops (1840) that would be controlled by the workers themselves with the support of the state. Capitalists would be welcome in this venture, and each person would receive goods in proportion to his or her needs. Blanc became a member of the French provisional government of 1848 and attempted to put some of his proposals into effect, but his efforts were sabotaged by his opponents.

16. Marxists In the 1840s the term  communism  came into use to denote loosely a militant leftist form of socialism; it was associated with the writings of Etienne Cabet and his theories of common ownership. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels later used it to describe the movement that advocated class struggle and revolution to establish a society of cooperation.

17. Karl Marx German political thinker in 19 th century. Did most of his work in Britain. Influenced by German philosopher Hegel. Published Communist Manifesto in 1848 with co-author Frederick Engels. Wrote multi-volume Capital ( Das Kapital ) , starting in 1867.

18. Marx’s key ideas 1. Slave system gave way to feudal economy 2. Feudal economy broke down with growth of manufacturing, towns, navigation & transportation, emergence of middle class 3. Industrial capitalism emerged, with only two classes: proletariat and bourgeoisie.

19. Bourgeois Bourgeois: modern capitalists who own the means of production and therefore get to keep all the profits. Today, this would include major stockholders in corporations

20. Proletarians Proletarians : modern wage laborers who sell their labor to live and don’t get any of the profits that they help to create. This includes everyone who is not a stockholder or owner of capital, even professionals who work for a salary

21. Democratic Socialism Democratic socialism took firm root in European politics after World War I. Socialist democratic parties actively participated in government in Great Britain, Germany, Sweden, Belgium, the Netherlands, and other nations. Socialism also became a powerful force in parts of Latin America, Asia, and Africa. To the Indian leader Jawaharlal Nehru and other leaders of independence movements, it was attractive as an alternative to the systems of private enterprise and exploitation established by their foreign rulers.

22. After World War II, socialist parties came to power in many nations throughout the world, and much private industry was nationalized. In Africa and Asia where the workers are peasants, not industrial laborers, socialist programs stressed land reform and other agrarian measures. These nations, until recently, have also emphasized government planning for rapid economic development. African socialism has also included the revival of precolonial values and institutions, while modernizing through the centralized apparatus of the one-party state. Recently, the collapse of Eastern European and Soviet Communist states has led socialists throughout the world to discard much of their doctrines regarding centralized planning and nationalization of enterprises.

23. Features of socialism Public Ownership Central Planning Definite Objectives Freedom of Consumption Equality of Income Distribution Planning and the Pricing Process

24. Merits of socialism Greater Economic Efficiency Greater Welfare due to Less Inequality of Income Absence of Monopolistic Practices Absence of Business Fluctuations

25. Demerits Of socialism

26. Demerits of socialism  Loss of Consumers’ Sovereignty No Freedom of Occupation Bureaucratic

27. CONCLUSION In socialism, everybody would have  free access  to the goods and services designed to directly meet their needs and there need be no system of payment for the work that each individual contributes to producing them. All work would be on a voluntary basis. Producing for needs means that people would engage in work that has a direct usefulness. The satisfaction that this would provide, along with the increased opportunity to shape working patterns and conditions, would bring about new attitudes to work.

28. There is no doubt that a socialist economy is better than a capitalist economy because of its overwhelming merits. But it is disliked for the loss of political, economic and personal freedoms.

29. References Wikipedia Britanicca ready reference encyclopedia. Illustrated family encyclopedia.