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Principles of a just society
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Throughout the course of history there have been numerous ideas and designs for the structure of a community. Democracies and dictatorships are two examples of designs for the structure of a community. There are many political structures that are very successful, as well as other political structures that fail due to lack of support or the way the political system is structured. There also exist community structures that only exist theoretically. One type of community structure that is theoretical is Socrates idea of a just society. Socrates' design is referred to as Socratic communism. Socrates' claims that in order for a society to be successful; every aspect of the society must work in harmony with all other parts of the society. Socrates' puts a heavy emphasis on a censored education, the abolishment of family, class divisions and the use of lies. Socratic communism is advantageous because it creates a society that is fully functional and one that has no tolerance for discontent among its members.
One of the most important aspects of Socratic communism is education. Socrates says that the "just city" thrives on every member of the society being well educated. This education must also be heavily censored. A censored education is very advantageous because it improves the quality of life for everyone and also puts an end to corruption. A non-censored education can lead to people believing in unjust causes. A censored education causes total uniformity and equality within the society. People would be unable to form their own opinions, which would mean that in most cases there is only way of doing things. Human emotions would be very limited, which would put an end to many everyday problems that can occur in a community. Although this aspect of Socratic communism eliminates the uniqueness and individuality of a person, it is necessary to do so in order to have an efficient and just society.
Another important feature of Socratic communism is the abolishment of the family. Abolishment of the family is advantageous because it gets rid of people's natural affection towards one's own. In order for a society to progress, there must be people or groups of people that are better and more accomplished than others. In a Socratic communist society there is an incentive for progression. This incentive is sex
Socratic communism uses something called the noble lie. The noble lie ensures that every member of the society is happy.
Though the rewards are pleasing to the ear, the path to obtaining the benefits of communism is a violent one. This strict governing idea was derived from Communist Manifesto, a book written by two German economists, Karl Marx and Fredrich Engels, who declare that many problems in society are caused by the unequal distribution of wealth. These two believe that “Communism deprives no man of the ability to appropriate the fruits of his labour. The only thing it deprives him of is the ability to enslave others by means of such appropriations.” To achieve the goal of happiness and prosperity for all, the lines that distinguish the differences between the rich and poor must be erased. Obviously, the rich will never voluntarily give up their goods or status; therefore the figureheads must force equality among the citizens. Communism places their citizens, whether they be the wealthy or the laborers, into working classes that specify their contribution to the government. With such balanced placement of the people, individuality is impossible for any single person to achieve.
In Marx's ideal communist world, the entire populace is equal, and shares everything. There is no competition, and no one is rewarded more or less based on his or her individual achievement. Yet with this newfound sense of a worldwide sharing, there, in theory, is no poverty or hunger.
...equality. While it is a nice notion that there should be a society free of jealousy, war, and inequality, it is not accomplished by a government imposing laws which regulates its citizens’ success (even if that law if from the people). This type of social structure, where everyone is treated equally discourages work because minimal effort will reap the same results. Rather, the ideal government is a limited one; one where commerce and capitalism is encouraged.
Karl Marx never saw his ideals and beliefs, as the founding father of communist thought, implemented in the world and society because he died in 1883.1 The communist ideology did not rise to power until the beginning of the 20th century. Then it would be implemented and put into practice in the largest country in the world producing a concept that would control half of the world’s population in less than 50 years. The Manifesto of the Communist Party, written by Karl Marx and Fredrick Engels, searched for a perfect society living in equality and united in freedom. According to Marx this could only be accomplished in an anti-capitalist society.2 When their ideals where implemented in the 20th century, their message became warped and disfigured by the leadership of the worlds’ communist powers. Communism became in some ways more and in others less than Marx had first envisioned so many years before in 1848. Marx’s sought a social “Utopia,” while modern communist thought became a view of world domination.3 Many of the centralized governments of modern communism have fallen apart toward the end of the 20th century, confronted with concepts of self-government and revolution. Therefore, it is vital to document the rise and fall of modern communism throughout the world, and review the modern communist thought as it contrasted with that of Marx and Engels over 150 years ago.
Society is flawed. There are critical imbalances in it that cause much of humanity to suffer. In, the most interesting work from this past half-semester, The Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx is reacting to this fact by describing his vision of a perfectly balanced society, a communist society. Simply put, a communist society is one where all property is held in common. No one person has more than the other, but rather everyone shares in the fruits of their labors. Marx is writing of this society because, he believes it to be the best form of society possible. He states that communism creates the correct balance between the needs of the individual and the needs of society. And furthermore thinks that sometimes violence is necessary to reach the state of communism. This paper will reflect upon these two topics: the relationship of the individual and society, and the issue of violence, as each is portrayed in the manifesto.
Ironically, Communism has never existed anywhere. There has never been a system implemented in our entire history by which a society has been utterly classless. Communism would be a type of egalitarian society with no state, no privately owned means of production and no social class (Wikipedia). Today there is a selection of “Communist” states that exist in a variety of locations on our globe. Sadly, all of the claimed Communist states including the late Soviet Union were and are despicable and corrupted examples of the idea of Communism. By using Stalin as an example it is quite possible to portray to the reader a simple and effective example of the flip side of attempted Communism. Stalin took control of a weak government and crafted an illusionary Communist state. Ironically, Stalin had set himself up as the dictator of a completely totalitarian society. By using the people of Russia, he was able to harness the government and use it for his own needs. This is quite similar to 1984 with the concept of Big Brother. Although Big Brother is not a person, the inner society that controls “him” creates a Stalinist nation; this was quite purposefully included by Orwell.
Karl Marx, author of The Communist Manifesto and Das Kapital, was the originator of the political and economic theory of Scientific Socialism (modern Communism). Communism, by definition, is the complete control of major resources and the means of production by government, initially in the form of autocracy. In theory, under this system all would be equal; all would share in both work, according to their ability, and profit, according to need. According to Marx, the proletariat, or working class, would revolt against the bourgeoisie, or wealthy capitalist class, because of the stark contrast prevalent between the wealthy and poor. The new economy, run by and for the people, would produce not for profit, but for the needs of the people. Thus, abundance would rule. Marx further predicted this revolution would occur in Western Europe, the most industrialized and capitalist portion of the world.
Communism is a system of political and economic organization in which property is owned by the community and all citizens share in the enjoyment of the common wealth, more or less according to their need. Marx believed that property is based on wage labor and capital labor. In the Communist Manifesto, he suggested a course of action for a proletariat revolution to overthrow capitalism and, eventually, br...
Communism is an economic system where, in theory, ownership of everything (e.g. goods, industrial products, businesses, farm produce, etc.) is collectively by the Government and the payment of income is only based one’s need. In communism, individuals have little say or on say at all on what to produce, not even owning anything since ownership is only by the Government. Communism is a socio-economic structure based on classless, stateless society where the means of production are on common ownership. Therefore, communism is the idea of free society where there is no divisions, humanity is not oppressed, no need for Government or countries. A citizen earns according to their needs and gives according to their abilities to do so.
According to Equality 7-2521’s society, the principle of collectivism has overcome more capitalist regimes in the Great Rebirth. Consequently, every facet of society is incorporated into a firm state system. For instance, the school system programmes the children of certain state with the viewpoint that rather than living to satisfy their self desires, they should live entirely for their fellow community members. This philosophy parallels the Soviet use of the term “comrade” to refer to a fellow citizen (Peikoff, 4). This leads to a highly dystopian...
Common misperceptions have convinced Americans over the years that communism is corrupt form of government. In reality, the leaders of so called communist countries are corrupt. Communism is an economic system derived by Karl Marx, which in theory is composed of publicly owned property and wealth spread equally among the population. According to Merino in his preface to What Are Some Concerns About Capitalism?, “Communism’s defining feature is the public, or communal, ownership of capital” in which “the means of production owned and utilized by all for the common good” where there is no difference in the wealth between the people. Communism and capitalism have opposite values, while communism is beneficial for society as a whole, capitalism
Throughout history the world has experienced several types of socio-economies, from Mussolini’s fascism to Mao’s communism. All of those economies have its weaknesses and strengths and most have countries that can validate its effectiveness. However, to decide which economy is truly better for society, there has to be criteria on which to judge the economy’s effectiveness. So what is a society? In essence, it is a network of bonds we as human beings forged under the assumption, that working together we can all be happier than if we were only looking out for ourselves. With society, everyone is able to concentrate on what they do best, reap the benefits from the skills of others, and avoid the conflict that would arise otherwise. Thus, it follows that the ultimate goal of society is the happiness of everyone. And currently, there is only one economy that has staved off the test of time and reached that goal. Capitalism, with its merit system, flexible cost adjustments, and by having no other economic contenders is able to achieve a better society than any other socio-economic system can.
Marx believed that the class system was the main problem and should be demolished. He believed that everyone should be equal and should work together in order to create. In his thoughts in The Communist Manifesto, he tells of all the benefits due to the many changes that will be made in his classless society. Socially everyone will be looked upon as equal, and everyone will contribute to their society. Intellectually, the people will not be selfish and will all come together to combine their ideas. Politically things will be different since there will be no government. Also, religions will be abolished and there will be no higher beings. Economically, property will not be privately owned and everything will be shared by all. In this society, there are many problems and this seems like a great way to bring about change.
Socialists suggest that social stability and cohesion is the leading method towards of social equality, and therefore prefer cooperation to competition, and favour collectivism over individualism. As socialism’s core value is equality, it is often referred to as egalitarianism. Due to the distinctive gap between social classes, the goal of socialism is to eliminate class divisions by promoting freedom for the need of material and basis personal
“The only way to identify the requirements of justice is to see how each particular community understands the value of social goods”(Kymlicka 211). This is the approach to justice from the communitarian. Communitarianism in the last few decades has sparked in popularity among political philosophers. Communitarians believe that political theories, such as classic liberalism, leaves out the importance and significance of the community. The communitarian respects and upholds social practices and traditions as a way of governing, and as a way of justice. Because of the importance of the cultural aspect, this political current is thought of as a cultural relativist approach to justice. The communitarian does not accept the notion of being able to detach the self from roles of society. While communitarianism shows a great respect for cultural practices and tradition, it is an incomplete theory on the notion of being able to protect individual citizens from social institutions, like the community itself.