In terms of an unscientific, idealistic understanding of history, certain forms of consciousness, ideas, religious or moral concepts, legal or political theories act as the basis of social life. The social structure, economic relations and the development of civilization as a whole, thus, are declared dependent on them. However, at a certain historical stage of this concept, another doctrine was opposed. Its founders are F. Engels and Karl Marx. The basis and superstructure in their concept were key concepts. Consider these categories in detail.
general characteristics
The basis and superstructure of society are the basic concepts of historical materialism. At a certain stage of development, an appropriate economic structure is formed. It acts as a basis. At the same time, in the social sphere, legal, political, religious, philosophical, artistic views and the institutions corresponding to them are formed. They form the add-in.
Specificity
Any basis defines an add-in. Under feudalism, there were their own views and institutions, under capitalism - their own, under socialism - corresponding to it. The basis and the add-in are in a certain connection. If the first is eliminated or changed, the second is corrected or disappears. Accordingly, if a new basis arises, the add-in will appear after it.
The Importance of Historical Materialism
The basis and superstructure (according to Marx ) became the key links in the development of new theoretical thought. The concept of historical materialism is seen as the greatest discovery. Its essence is as follows.
The basis and superstructure are those vital categories without which there can be no development of mankind. In this case, they arise in a strict order. First of all, people should drink, eat, have housing and clothes. And only then they can engage in art, politics, religion and other things. The creation of immediate material wealth, acting as a means of livelihood, and, accordingly, each stage of development of an era or people form the basis. And state institutions, views, art, spiritual, religious representations of people come out of it. And just from the basis is the justification for the perception of the environment, and not vice versa.
Explanations
For a better understanding of what a basis and a superstructure are , we will consider the process of creating material goods. It is the basis of the life of society. The implements of production and all the people who bring them into action possess certain experience, skills for work, and form productive forces. They, in turn, act only as one of the necessary aspects of life. Another aspect is formed by production relations. Creating goods, people establish certain connections with each other. The production process can proceed only within the framework of these relations. Relations constitute the economic structure of society - its real basis.
Forces and relationships form two inseparable and necessary aspects of the mode of production. He, in turn, acts as the embodiment of their unity in the process of creating goods. On the mode of production in a particular society, its ideology, views, political institutions will mainly depend. The prevailing method of creating goods corresponds to certain prevailing theories, forms of consciousness.
Social revolution
The formed basis and superstructure undergo certain changes. They are determined by the development of the social system, the improvement of the state system. With a change in the productive forces, relations between people also change. Sooner or later, this will lead to a transformation of the entire social structure. Marx talked about the fact that at a certain stage of development material forces come into conflict with production relations.
The last of the forms of development are transformed into fetters. In such a situation, a social revolution begins. With a change in the economic basis at one rate or another, a revolution occurs in the entire superstructure. When considering it, it is always necessary to differentiate the material aspect from the political, legal, philosophical, religious and other ideological forms within which people are aware of the conflict that has arisen and the struggle is waged.
Conclusion
The superstructure formed on a certain basis begins to have an opposite effect on it. The nature of this effect may be different. This will depend on the social nature of the basis and the superstructure itself. The latter, in particular, can have a translational effect in the direction of a similar course of social development. Accordingly, it will contribute to the subsequent progress of the productive forces in society. Such a situation takes place in the socialist model.
The superstructure can also act as a slowing factor for the progress of production forces and, accordingly, delay the development of society. This situation develops in the capitalist model. Under socialism, as the adherents of materialism claimed, the progress of society is distinguished by a planned and conscious character. The vital principles of the Soviet system were the policies of the Communist Party and the state. Their role and importance are extremely high. The communist education of workers, the dissemination of scientific and political knowledge to the masses, appear as a powerful force for the construction of communism.