In world economic theory, a special place is occupied by German philosopher economists. One of the notable people of his time was Karl Kautsky. His works in many respects echoed the works of K. Marx, but had a number of special features that made the views of this German philosopher unique in their own way. He managed to attract many supporters, and part of his work is still relevant. And right-wing socialist leaders now use the ideas voiced by Karl Kautsky in their books.
Biography
The life of the future economist begins in ancient Prague, it was there in 1854 that this great man was born. In those days, Central Europe led a fairly quiet life, and its educational institutions competed with eminent British universities.
Karl Kautsky received a brilliant education at the University of Vienna. As a student, he shared the views of the socialists and studied in detail the works of K. Marx. Since the late 1870s, he has shared many of the views of Marxists. In particular, the so-called agrarian question begins to interest him along with the characteristics of the labor movement and the struggle against revisionism. The position of editor of the rather popular magazine Die Neue Zeit promotes the spread of socialist ideas in Central and Western Europe, although his readers noted a certain pedantry of his work and a penchant for scientific scholasticism.
Propaganda of Marxism
In 1885-1888, Karl Kautsky lives in London, where he closely communicates with Engels and supporters of Marxism. Since 1890 he moved to Germany, where he continues to publish articles on various aspects of Marxism. The enlightener’s talent and mastery of the word made Kautsky’s work quite popular among supporters of socialist and radical movements. Among his works are an analysis of the activities of Thomas More and his anti-utopia (1888), “Comments on the Exfurt Program” (1892), “The Precursors of Modern Socialism (1895).
Kautsky and Christianity
The German economist and philosopher devoted one of his works to the origin and development of the most ambitious religious movement of his time - Christianity. In his book, Kautsky talks about the economic and social reasons that determined the need of society for a new faith, explains the significance of historical realities and Jewish monotheism, due to which Christianity arose as a separate religion. The work “The Origin of Christianity” was highly appreciated by contemporaries, although even now it causes a lot of controversy among believers and among atheists.
Economic work
A detailed analysis of economic relations was carried out by him in 1887. "The Economic Doctrine of Karl Marx" is perhaps the most famous work of this scientist. In it, in an accessible and understandable language, the main theses of the famous "Capital" are stated. The places where Kautsky describes the theory of capital contain understandable artistic images that are accessible to people far from economic education.
Agricultural Issues
The ideas of capitalism in agriculture were brilliantly revealed in the book of K. Kautsky, “The Agrarian Question”. Here he describes the main trends that gradually developed an attitude towards land ownership over a long time: from the early feudal economic system to the modern era of developed capitalism. The German economist was able to streamline descriptive and statistical material, which by that time had accumulated a huge mass. In his work, Kautsky relies on official data from various surveys and censuses conducted in England, France, the USA, and Germany.
The smooth flow of the story from the early feudal relations to modern agriculture shows how agriculture in a short time turned from a patriarchal occupation into a science that allows to maximize profits. All his reasoning fits perfectly on the calculations of Marx and his economic theses.
A departure from the ideas of Marxism
At the beginning of the century, the idea of the dictatorship of the proletariat gained more and more popularity . The idea of changing the economic structure was also voiced at the Second Congress of the RSDLP, which began in 1903 in Brussels, and then continued to work in London. Kautsky closely followed the discussions of the delegates, but in his judgments he sided with the Mensheviks (anti-Iskra-ists). On this occasion, Karl Kautsky published several works written in the spirit of Marxism. Among them were “The Way to Power”, “Slavs and Revolution”. The works of the German economist were carefully studied by V.I. Lenin, who often quoted them in his speeches. Kautsky’s articles with Lenin’s comments were often published in Iskra.
Before the World War
The gradual rethinking of the ideas of K. Marx makes Kautsky move away from the ideas of the revolutionary struggle and the labor movement. He pursues a policy of reconciliation with various revisionists. Nevertheless, this did not prevent him in his work from supporting the movement of liquidators among the Russian Social Democrats. He also denies the principles of partisanship of Marxist philosophy, paying tribute to various non-organizational forms of protest. The scientific socialism of his work tried to coexist with non-Marxist philosophical ideas. Kautsky's views are undergoing a significant change. Moving away from the revolutionary view of Marxism, he is trying to explain and spread the principles of social chauvinists.
Kautsky in 1917
At the beginning of 1917, Kautsky was directly involved in the creation of a new party, the views of which he fully shared. This is an independent social democratic party in Germany, which in the first round of elections attracted a lot of votes. But Kautsky reacted extremely negatively to the October Revolution, opposing the transfer of power to the workers and peasants, while maintaining the principles of bourgeois democracy.
During the period of major political unrest in Germany, he maintained a course towards the reconciliation of capitalism with socialist ideas. The position of the German scientist in this matter was examined and criticized by V.I. Lenin in his work "The Proletarian Revolution and the Kautsky Degenerate."
As often happens, the ideas of the German philosopher outgrew their creator. In post-war Germany, the capitalist system remained dominant. Kautsky’s beloved brainchild (the Social Democratic Party) took on frightening features. When fascism raised its head in Central Europe, Kautsky did not fully realize what terrible consequences this could lead to. In 1938, the Nazis came to his beloved Vienna, and Karl Kautsky was forced to move to Prague, and then to Amsterdam, where he ended his life's journey.