Communism is an ideological, political, economic and social doctrine that proposes the equality of social classes through the suppression of private property, the administration of the means of production by workers and the equitable distribution of wealth. Among the main characteristics of communism, both ideological and pragmatic, we can point out the following:
1. It is based on Marxist doctrine
Carl Marx and Friedrich Engels are the ideologues of this model of thought. Together they wrote and published in 1848 the Communist Manifesto. Marx deepened his ideas in his masterpiece, Capitalpublished in 1867. From its approaches, different currents of Marxist thought have emerged and various communist-type political regimes have been generated, such as those of the former USSR, Cuba, China and North Korea, among others.
2. Born as a criticism of capitalism
Communism was born as a criticism of the liberal capitalism developed in Europe since the industrial revolution, which had led to the transformation of the modes of production and, consequently, the social order. These changes include: the consolidation of the upper bourgeoisie as the dominant class, the appearance of the working class or proletariat, the massification of society, the absolutization of capital as a social value and the deepening of social inequalities.
3. Introduces the concepts of structure and superstructure
According to Marx and Engels, in capitalist society a structure and a superstructure can be distinguished. The structure It would be made up of society and the productive apparatus. The superstructure would correspond to the institutions that control the social imaginary (culture) and justify inequality, such as the (capitalist) State, the educational system, academic institutions, religion, etc.
4. It is justified by the principle of class struggle
Communism is justified by the existence of class struggle and the need to achieve socioeconomic equality. If the upper bourgeoisie is the owner of the means of production, the proletariat is the labor force and is subordinated to the power of the former.
Communism states that in capitalism the proletariat has no control over the means of production, over the products it produces or over the profits that its work generates. This leads to exploitation, oppression and alienation. Therefore, there is an inherent tension in the system that must be released through revolution and the establishment of a new order.
5. Conceive alienation as a social problem
Communism maintains that alienation is a social problem and not strictly an individual one. It is conceived as the naturalization and ideological justification of social inequality, exploitation and oppression. Alienation, according to communism, is promoted by the dominant culture and is responsible for the proletariat not being aware of its condition, which favors the perpetuation of the capitalist system. Therefore, the revolution aims to awaken social consciousness.
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6. Proposes the elimination of private property
To make class equality and the end of exploitation possible, communism proposes eliminating private ownership of the means of production, which translates into workers’ control over them through the union and grassroots collective organizations. . Since there are no owners, neither exploitation nor inequality can exist.
7. It is anti-individualistic
Communism is contrary to individualism, since it makes class consciousness a fundamental principle and interprets individualism as a capitalist trait. Therefore, every individual is seen as an expression of his or her class, and only the proletarian class is considered a genuine representation of the “people” and the common good. In this sense, social self-promotion and individual economic freedom are not well regarded.
See also Characteristics of capitalism.
8. Fight the bourgeoisie
Communism sees the bourgeoisie as the enemy to fight. This is not limited only to the upper bourgeoisie, owners of the means of production, but also to the medium and petty bourgeoisie that normally occupy the state, academic, professional, cultural and religious institutions, responsible for ideological formation (superstructure).
9. Proposes an autonomous company
From a theoretical point of view, communism proposes that society eventually learn to regulate itself without the need for intervention from the State or a ruling elite. No historical experience of communism has reached this level.
10. Communist regimes promote themselves as the conscience of the people
Since becoming an autonomous society is a long process, it is up to the revolutionary State to guarantee the distribution of wealth in the proposed terms. Communist regimes seek to act, therefore, as the conscience of the people, the only valid interpreter of their needs and the only administrator of their assets (sole distributor of wealth).
11. Promotes one-partyism
For communism, an egalitarian society requires a unitary political culture, a justification for rejecting ideological diversity and promoting a one-party system. However, since communist regimes promote themselves as popular and democratic systems, one-partyism may not result in the illegalization of opposition parties, but rather in their demoralization, persecution and cornering.
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12. Tends towards state capitalism
In some communist models, the expropriated means of production remain under the tutelage of the State which, in turn, controls the unions. Therefore, there is a tendency for communism to lead to state capitalism, which acts as a monopolizing entity.
13. Tends towards totalitarianism
Communist regimes tend to penetrate all areas of social life by virtue of their anti-individualist principles. Thus, in communist regimes it is common to observe the control and censorship of the media and educational systems, the interference of the State in the family, one-party system, political persecution, the prohibition of religion, the nationalization of the media. production, the nationalization of banking and the financial system and the perpetuation of the ruling elite in power.
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