It was he who called into question the inviolability of Marxist teaching. Being a bright follower of social-democratic ideas, he was the author of a new theory of revisionism, the basis of which was the transformation in the system of views held by the Social Democrats. This person is Edward Bernstein. The "scourge" of Marxism and the head of the Second International was fully convinced that the doctrine of the "collapse of capitalism" and the theory of the "impoverishment of the proletariat" were fundamentally wrong. So who is he, Edward Bernstein, and why did he suddenly become an opponent of Marx? Let's consider this question in more detail.
Years of childhood and youth
It is known that Eduard Bernstein, whose brief biography is of particular interest to historians and political scientists, was born into a Jewish family. This event occurred on January 6, 1850 in Germany. Edward's parents were not wealthy people, but, nevertheless, they were able to give their offspring an education. The future Esdec graduated from a private men's school, after which he began to attend a gymnasium.
Then the young man entered a commercial school. Having become his graduate, he found a job as a simple clerk in a banking institution owned by the Rothschilds in the German capital.
PSD
Eduard Bernstein, already a youth, begins to get involved in the theory of socialism. Studying at the gymnasium, he establishes a team called Utopia, which includes people who share his views. And in 1872, a young man joined the ranks of the German Social Democratic Party. In parallel, he is engaged in journalistic activities within the political field. Soon, Eduard Bernstein, whose biography is not known to everyone, becomes an adherent of the socialist theory developed by Dühring. In the late 1870s, German authorities prohibited newspapers published by the Social Democrats, after which the young man was forced to leave his homeland.
Emigration
He is moving to Switzerland. For some time, the young man was acting as secretary to businessman Hechberg, who finances several prints of the Social Democrats.
In the early 1880s, Eduard Bernstein began working as an editor in the periodical Social Democrat. He worked in this position for almost 10 years, turning into an outspoken radicalist, after which the patience of the Swiss authorities burst, and the Social Democrat was expelled from the country. After Edward travels to the UK, where fate brings him together with Engels himself. They become close friends, and Bernstein is a supporter of Marxist teachings.
In Germany
In the early 1890s, Edward was finally allowed to return to his homeland, where he focuses his efforts on his political career. At this point, he finally decided on the choice of doctrine.
In 1902, Esdeck became a member of the German parliament. He will work with a short break in this capacity until 1928.
Theory of revisionism
Bernstein went down in history as an antagonist of Marxist teachings, and he does not agree not with all his provisions, but only with some. He developed the doctrine of revisionism.
Its author insisted that the theory of Marx needs to be refined, since it runs counter to new historical experience and the gradation of socialism as a political doctrine and as a doctrine is simply necessary. But the views held by Eduard Bernstein and the birth of revisionism were received with hostility by the leader of the Russian revolution Vladimir Lenin.
In his works "Problems of Socialism" and "Problems of Socialism and Social Democracy," the Social Democrats formulated his basic thesis: "Movement is everything, the ultimate goal is nothing."
The essence of criticism of the Marxist doctrine
He, as indicated above, questioned the correctness of certain provisions of Marxism from the point of view of scientific validity. Among them, in particular, is the dogma that the development of capitalism will provoke the impoverishment of the proletariat. What else did Edward Bernstein not agree with? The basic ideas of Marxism, based on the fact that the bourgeois system implies a mandatory concentration of capital in all areas of the economy, were also rejected by him. According to the Social Democrat, the stronger the capitalist system develops, the less noticeable are class contradictions, and the lives of ordinary workers in this case should be improved through state reforms.
And in building a social state in a bourgeois type, a very important tool is the legislative body, in which the "left" should be represented in the majority.
At the same time, Bernstein is a supporter of the gradual reform of political and economic institutions. Moreover, the principles of self-determination, solidarity and democracy should also be “softly” and “carefully” realized. At the same time, the Social Security Council warns of the inadmissibility of violating such a sequence by force (mechanical), otherwise the society may face a crisis.
It is paradoxical that practice has not confirmed the theory of Engels and Marx, according to which only an armed seizure of power by the proletarians can lead to the "socialization" of the economy.
“Is scientific socialism possible?”
This is the name of the work of Eduard Bernstein, written by him in 1901. In it, he listed the main directions of reforms relating to the Marxist model of development. Esdeck considers the concept of socialism from three points of view. The first implies socialism as a theory based on class contradictions.
The second point of view positions the object as a movement to transform the capitalist system into a collective economy with governing bodies. The third assumes that socialism is a doctrine that indicates which path the development of society will take.
Eduard Bernstein emphasized in this work that declaring the goals of class opposition as ideal goals for the development of society is a classic fallacy.
“Each postulate of the theory of socialism elevated to the status of science should be positioned as an invariable rule in the chain of its logical evidence. And under the condition of close interaction with the practice that socialism seeks, this fact in some cases can nullify the practical movement, ”writes the“ scourge ”of Marxism.
Bernstein puts forward the idea that socialism as a consolidation of practice and theory does not lend itself to scientific justification, although it does not need it. The fact is that the doctrine of socialism is viable only if it provides for some moral and legal dogmas.
At the same time, the revisionist approach of the Social Democrats by contemporaries was interpreted as an absolute rejection of the methodology and theory of Marxism.
Esdeck's personal attitude towards Marxism
Eduard Bernstein as an ideologist of social democracy, Karl Marx's attitude was ambiguous. He perceived it as the focus of the theory of class struggle, history, philosophy, the political economy of capitalism, and this symbiosis was updated with advanced studies of the state of civil society.
Eduard Bernstein partially managed to level the inviolability of the basic principles of Marxism, but he singled out the positive aspects in it. In particular, the Esdec considered it a plus that the teachings of Karl Marx were able to consolidate and coexist in two interpretations of socialism: the class struggle and spiritual-theoretical activity.
Historians are of the opinion that the main component of Bernstein’s thinking was intellectual honesty. He was the first of the followers of the teachings of Engels and Marx who focused on his status and effectiveness in the new historical conditions.