How does it feel to live in an ideal state? No one has a clue. An ideal state sometimes arises in the heads obscured by propaganda, but is only an illusion or self-deception. But the question is interesting, and I would like to know the answer. Well, logically, let’s say that since there is no ideal state, it is necessary to create it. But here is how to do it? Karl Marx claimed that his method was the most effective. We have no reason not to believe him, but, as they say, "trust, but verify." So we will consider the pros and cons of communism and, what the hell is not joking, we will become one step closer to an ideal state.
The characteristic of communism
Communism is a political system that implies the complete absence of class division of society and private property. Thus, according to the theory of communism, social equality is achieved .
To put the theory into practice, it is necessary to focus on production. The basis of production are people. Everyone does a certain job, works for the common good, and not for personal gain. Thus, everyone works for each other and the state as a whole, so that everyone is provided with the necessary conditions of work and life. After all, we all know: "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs!"
Already at the stage of trying to define communism, a clear understanding comes of the fact that this is utopia. The commune, characterized by fair sayings, seems to be a paradise. There are no worries, everyone is doing his own thing, and his work is extremely useful. And the finer the words about communism, the harder it is to realize the impossibility of achieving it. Marx and Engels presented the communist system as the end result - utopia, and therefore we cannot consider the pros and cons of communism in practice and are forced to turn to theory.
Theory of Communism
Communism presented itself as an ideal development path in the writings of Mark and Engels. The main indicator is equality, the free development of personality. This is achieved through material development and overcoming private property. The entire transition to communism is a natural process. Moreover, the conditions and prerequisites are made up of capitalism.
The transition from capitalism to socialism is a difficult period. It begins with the conquest of political power by the working class. The struggle against capitalism flares up. Further, after "the long agony of childbirth," socialism appears.
K. Marx:
Between capitalist and communist society lies the period of the revolutionary transformation of the former into the latter.
Socialism is the lowest form of development of communism. At this stage, the foundations of public ownership begin to take shape. However, inequality and the division of labor remain. Finally, in its highest phase, communism in its purest form flourishes. Each member of the society freely and comprehensively develops, thereby developing the society. The exploitation of man by man ceases .
This is all, however, only a theory. In practice, the development of communism has come to the first stage - socialism. True, a little distorted.
The practice of communism
For example, consider the pros and cons of communism in the USSR. The first stage, that is, the conquest of power by the proletariat, was successful. The Communist Party began the fight against capitalism, and, as planned, from the position of the strongest party supported by the state. After major victories came the turn of removing the root foundation of capitalism from society. Agriculture passed into the hands of the proletariat, "dispossession" transferred the remnants of private property to public property. The bright era of socialism has begun.
Socialism, however, did not appear at all as beautiful as Marx described it. The long-awaited victory led, of course, to successes in building communism. However, socialism appeared in a modified form. It cannot be said that it was a “machine of terror,” but language cannot be called a proper “Marxism” either. A ban was imposed on private property, labor became available to all, though not complete, but still equality reigned. What was wrong?
Let's start from the bottom. Too large losses during the transition period could not be properly replenished later. So socialism appeared instead of the "triumph of the proletariat", let us say, a "Pyrrhic victory." However, the trail was visible and a beautiful bright future appealed to itself.
The following problem arose in the ideological environment. The equality of labor began to settle down, everyone was provided with work, production entered the stage of development. Material development went in the right direction. It was not possible, however, to change the minds of people. Human nature, as it should be, longed for power and easy ways to solve the problem. Here the main “hole” and utopianism of communism was revealed. This was further exacerbated by an increasing shortage of consumer goods.
As you might guess, the development of society did not reach the stage of communism and, in principle, could not. The distant bright future remained as bright, however, it moved away even more, going beyond the limits of real life. And society remained in the beautiful and eternal "on the threshold of freedom."
History of communism
The expression of the ideas of communism occurred long before the advent of Marx's theory. Even in ancient Greece, sophists promoted communist ideas, and Pythagoras introduced among his students the concept of "everything is common among friends." Plato, drawing an ideal state, was obsessed with the idea of absolute community not only of material wealth, but also of wives and children. In comedies, an idealized image of barbarians appeared, in particular the Scythians, whose social structure was the basic ideas of communism.
In the future, the concept of communism did not develop significantly, and socialism was considered a separate direction. Ideas, however, were in no hurry to "die." Pavel Florensky wrote:
The idea of a hostel as a joint living in complete love, like-mindedness and economic unity — whether it is called in Greek cinematography or Latin — communism — has always been so close to the Russian soul and shining in it as the coveted commandment of life — it has been raised and embodied in Trinity-Sergius Lavra by the Monk Sergius.
Later, in 1847, the Union of Communists was created. The Union published the "Communist Manifesto", which represented this social formation as we used to see it.
War communism
Consider a vivid example of a modified “beyond recognition” communist ideology caused by unrest and internal problems. Namely, let us turn to the pros and cons of military communism.
War communism is the policy of the Soviet state in the period from 1918 to 1921. It was introduced in the conditions of the Civil War. In fact, it was communism, aggravated to the maximum extent. The property, which was supposed to become public through the state, remained in the hands of the latter. Thus, communism turned into a society of the “workers factory”, over which the ruling party had power.
Let us turn to the pros and cons of the policy of war communism. The main advantage is the effectiveness of the distribution of human resources. Since the country worked for maximum productivity, there could not be a shortage of workers, and therefore everyone was provided with their share of labor. This also helped the concentration of the country's resources and their direction in the fight against enemies and military growth.
Among the minuses is the lack of growth in a market economy. All forces were devoted to certain needs, while the remaining areas were slowly brought to desolation. It is worth noting that then it was almost the only working option. The army needed food support for the Civil War. It was necessary to protect the country from foreign interference.
Let us turn to the pros and cons of the outcome of military communism. The main plus is a successful struggle against internal and external enemies, complete centralization and development of military and industrial production. The main minus is now obvious to us: such a policy has led the country to a severe economic crisis.
The pros and cons of communism
Theoretically, communism is a solid fat plus. This is utopia, and therefore it cannot carry anything negative in itself. So let us turn to the practice of the USSR, against its background, outlining the main pros and cons of communism.
Let's start with the pros. The first thing that pops up in the mind is confidence in the future. Indeed, the country is stable and society is calm. The twofold plus is the limited information. On the one hand, people are limited from all kinds of “vulgarities and extremes,” on the other hand, they lose their free thinking (some will find it harmful in large quantities, but the question is subjective). And, of course, the equality of people (almost all).
The main minus of communism as a whole is the impossibility of its construction, utopianism. If we take precisely “communism” in the USSR, then such a thing as censorship pops up to the surface. The big problem of the current information age, but not so sharply perceived earlier. Nevertheless, the restriction in obtaining information is counted as a minus. Deficit is one of the main disadvantages. It was he who partially ensured relative equality, which, however, does not detract from his negative side.
The lack of freedom contrasts sharply with current life. Denial of religion can be a plus or minus for different people. However, the minus is that, rejecting religion, they could not give people enough of its replacement.
Total
We examined the ideas themselves, practice, the positive and negative aspects of communism. Now these ideas are already firmly entrenched in history and have produced their effect. They are already a thing of the past, and this utopia, as it turned out in practice, needs to be revised or refined. In its "raw" form, it did not pass the strength test.