The historical process is very heterogeneous, sometimes spasmodically, sometimes evolutionarily, sometimes completely falls into stagnation. However, the eternal is the question of what are the driving forces of history. The question of the direction of these forces has given many answers, very different in meaning, from unbridled optimistic to darkly doomed, with elements of utopianism.
In antiquity, and not only antique, it was very popular opinion that humanity goes from the "golden" century to its decline. The progressiveness and driving forces of progress led people to an extreme degree of physical facilitation of work, the appearance of computers deprived a person of the development of mental research and stopped the vertical orientation of development. This, of course, is an extreme point of view on the consequences of progress, but a bit of truth is present here. In
history, productive forces are considered the
driving forces of development , and accordingly, their improvement leads to the further successful development of mankind with some nuances of a geographical and
national character. In other words, the
mode of production also implies one degree or another of progress. Different factors act as driving forces, however, this is mainly scientific and technological progress in all spheres of society.
In the ancient world, the main mode of production was the work of slaves, until a certain time it was quite productive and provided for the satisfaction of the needs of those societies. However, gradually the axiom that a slave cannot work fruitfully, because he is not interested in the results of his labor, prevailed, and slavery was replaced by a more progressive feudal mode of production. He, of course, was more productive in the early stages of his existence, but due to the personal lack of freedom of the peasants, he also became unproductive at his departure. Then the capitalist mode of production comes into play, here the free producer is personally interested as a result of his labor, which means that there is a need to consolidate his right to the means of production, which would further strengthen this effect.
In general, progress is a two-way process and acts selectively. Human development does not at all mean that all societies are progressing at the same time. On the contrary, some archaic societies seemed to freeze in the Stone Age, it is enough to recall the Indians of the Amazon.
So, the driving force of progress affects only a part of societies, and even in them it is elementary, and not systemic, especially before the 17-18 centuries. It was during this period that the most important changes in the methods of production took place. Along with major changes in military affairs, public administration, technical and technological processes in other areas, they could be very modest and even backward. It is enough to recall the wide industrial development of Russia in the middle of the 19th century along with the existing serfdom. In a complex global process, the driving forces of history were summed up and poured into a common development. The driving forces of progress, therefore, are the contradictions of progressive development.