A Comparison of Capitalism and Marxism
This essay will compare the economic principles of capitalism and communism by giving brief historical background on both and describing the two. I will begin with the father of economy, Adam Smith, and finish with the theories of Karl Marx.
Adam Smith believed that if everyone behaves selfishly we are doing what is best for the economy of our society. This is what is known as “enlightened selfishness.” “Enlightened selfishness” is one of the main elements of capitalism. Profit is the motive for production of goods and greed is a virtue. You can own private property, but to maintain that private property you need capital to invest. Investing in something is always a risk. The larger the risk, the larger the pay-off. In a capitalistic society, the government does what is known as laissez-faire. This means that the government does not interfere with the market. This is known as the “hidden hand.” The desired result of laissez-faire and “enlightened selfishness” is competition. Ideally, this competition will bring out the best product for the buyers, and those who produce the best will be rewarded.
Before explaining the theories of communism it is necessary to understand the factory system of the time, otherwise known as industrialization. In the mid 1800’s, the cottage industry was switching over to the factory industry. The invention of the steam engine benefited the cities closest to water. Many new industries were emerging, but there were many negative effects of industrialization such as the exploitation of the worker. This was accomplished by the regimentation of the working class in the massive factories of the times. The factory system increased production but the workers we...
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... proletariat must become the government and abolish the power of the bourgeoisie. During the transition period between capitalism and communism it would be necessary to have a brief period of time where the state would be ruled by the dictatorship of the proletariat. After the revolution, the power of the newly communist country would be greatly taxed and vulnerable to attack of neighborhood countries fearing the “infection” of communism. Only through a temporary dictatorship could the nation be protected from the onslaught of other nations and from the class enemies (counter-revolutionaries, reactionaries, and propagandists seeking to undo communism).
The several distinct differences between communism and capitalism are made apparent by studying the principal theories behind the two.
Bibliography:
The Communist Manifesto (1848)
Das Kapital (1866)
The weapons that the bourgeoisie used to overcome feudalism are now going to turn against them and be their undoing. At some point there is too much of everything (civilization, industry), begins to endanger the society the bourgeoisie has created. As the bourgeoisies capital grows and develops so does the development of the working class, or proletariats. As the clashes between the different classes the bourgeoisie, Marx says, will appeal for help from the proletariat thus advancing their general education as well as political filling their weapon arsenals against the ruling class of society.
Communism versus Capitalism is a debate that has raged on for over two centuries. Whether to allow everyone equal opportunities and to do with those opportunities as they please or to mandate class equality in order to keep peace has in itself been the cause of wars. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels saw the working class of the world--the proletariat--being squashed by the greedy business owners--the bourgeoisie. In their view, the bourgeoisie owned too much and the proletariat had no chance to make their own fortunes. In Marx and Engels Communist Manifesto, they propose doing away with private property, nationality, and even countries in order to take power away from the bourgeoisie. However, according to Samuel Smiles, it is the laziness of the working class and the poor that put them in that position. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels would adamantly disagree.
Economic systems are affected by the two opposing systems of Capitalism and Communism. They each can meet the needs of people; however, both affect the lives of people in good and bad ways, affecting industrialized nations and nations in the process of being industrialized.
The end of 19th century, Western Society was changing physically, philosophically, economically, and politically. It was an influential and critical time in that the Industrial Revolution created a new class. Many contemporary observers realized the dramatic changes in society. Among these were Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels who observed the conditions of the working man, or the proletariat, and saw a change in how goods and wealth were distributed. In their Communist Manifesto, they described their observations of the inequalities between the emerging wealthy middle class and the proletariat as well as the condition of the proletariat. They argued that the proletariat was at the mercy of the new emerging middle class, or bourgeoisie, and could only be rescued by Communism: a new economic form.
In the Manifesto of the Communist Party, what communism is is discussed; this writing attempts to enlighten the world about what communism ideals are. The communist party is pro-proletariat and wants what is best, in their eyes, for the working class people. “The essential condition for the existence and rule of the bourgeois class is the accumulation of wealth in private hands, the formation of capital; the essential condition of capital is wage-labour” (Marx, p. 135). According to Marx and Engels, the reason the bourgeois class exists is because of the labor from the proletariat class; without the capital produced from the proletariat the bourgeois class would not be as successful as they are. “The Communists are no separate party distinct from other working people” (Marx, p. 135). It is being argued that the Communist party is made up of working class people who are tired of their rights being trampled on and want to do something about it. This shows a connection to the proletariat and the Communist party is more likely to gain support by utilizing this approach.
The Communist Manifesto was published in 1848, a period of political turmoil in Europe. Its meaning in today’s capitalistic world is a very controversial issue. Some people, such as the American government, consider socialism taboo and thus disregard the manifesto. They believe that capitalism, and the world itself, has changed greatly from the one Marx was describing in the Manifesto and, therefore, that Marx’s ideas cannot be used to comprehend today’s economy. Others find that the Manifesto highlights issues that are still problematic today. Marx’s predicative notions in the Communist Manifesto are the key to understanding modern day capitalism.
Sociologist Karl Marx (who worked mostly with macro theories) was always credited with the creation of communism, but the fact is that it was being practiced in many countries such as the Soviet Union with little influence from him. He did have promoting theories about the concept, but none of which were used the way in which he predicted they would be. All the while, many seem to ignore the work and studies he did on capitalism as well. A very important theory he devised on capitalism is one that has been built on by many while others have built theories in opposition. This theory is defining capitalism as a system of economy that is supported by capitalist owning the necessities for the proletariats, or workers, to work with in order to earn the
In western capitalist societies, communism is portrayed as a system that practices wealth distribution where everyone makes the same amount of money and own the same exact things with no competition. In reality Marx’s idea of communism gives people the chance to develop their skills and advance their potential to the fullest extent, that is actually denied under the capitalist class system. Marx agrees with rousseau that political and civil rights are important and gives the people more power but he takes it further and argues that in order for people to be truly free they must have control on their labor and their production by democratizing the economic and labor system.
This paper aims to provides a full understanding of the free market system and how it can potentially benefit individual’s needs. The free market system is fully explained and classical economist’s views are considered separately as well as in contrast with one another. The specific economists discussed include Ricardo, Marx, and Mill. Their individual opinions on how the free market system could impact the economy is examined and the effects of an economic system controlled by the government is also discussed.
The word “communism” is generally linked with “Marxism”. Since Marx along with Friedrich Engels published the cutting-edge thesis, The Communist Manifesto in the middle of the 19th century, it conceived the new dimension for both politics and economics. Before turning to the principles of the Manifesto, it is useful to present the brief historical background of the era, and understand why it affected the ideology. Predominantly the Industrial Revolution (IR) and the Great Revolution in France (FR) transformed the society as follows; creation of conditions for capitalism by destroying feudalism. Period between 1820 -1840 marks the beginning of the IR, which altered the whole meantime s...
In his Manifesto of the Communist Party Karl Marx created a radical theory revolving not around the man made institution of government itself, but around the ever present guiding vice of man that is materialism and the economic classes that stemmed from it. By unfolding the relat...
Communism, socialism, and capitalism are the three basic forms of economical systems, each evident in the world. Although Karl Marx is portrayed as the father of communism, Marx is able to provide a substantial amount of information about the capitalistic world. In his work, “Capital (1867)”, Marx discusses the nature of commodities, wages, and the relationship between a worker and the capitalist economic system. As a result, Marx portrays workers as human beings who have been exploited in order to maximize production and profit in a capitalistic society. Although Karl Marx wrote “Capital (1867)” over a century ago, Marx’s arguments concerning the various uses of human labor, commodities, and values, have remained relevant in the United States
When Karl Marx first penned his shaping works on communism, he assumed that the relationship between workers and capital would always be opposing. While most rejected his overall theories, they did not argue with the basic idea that the interests of workers would always be at odds with those of owners. This is one of Marx's only theories that has proven to be true. As a consequence, over the years, that thought has guided the marketplace in terms of deciding wages, working conditions and other worker centered benefits.
Karl Marx, in the Capital, developed his critique of capitalism by analyzing its characteristics and its development throughout history. The critique contains Marx’s most developed economic analysis and philosophical insight. Although it was written in 1850s, its values still serve an important purpose in the globalized world and maintains extremely relevant in the twenty-first century.
There is a long-running debate about whether communism or capitalism is preferable and shows more of beneficial aspects. Capitalism is defined as an economic system in which investment in and ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange of wealth is made and maintained chiefly by private individuals or corporations. While communism is a system of social organization in which all economic and social activity is controlled by the state. The principle of capitalism is if one is successful and hardworking will keep improve and progress in life. While the principle of communism is to keep all the people the same, a lot of people may say that this is a good thing but when talking about real life this would add laziness and demotivation because hardworking people would gain the same credit as lazy people. Capitalism and communism are the two main economic systems that are used by governments nowadays. Obviously capitalism is a much better economic system to be used by a state; practical uses and statistical facts qualify capitalism as much more successful. Also, capitalism is more beneficial to the state, common citizens, and business owners. It would be very useful to test the two systems according to practical uses of the two systems on states and monitor which states succeeded and which states failed.