Socialism

Socialism after Marx By the time of Marx’s death in 1883, many socialists had begun to call themselves “Marxists.” His influence was particularly strong within the Caught up in these currents were men and women who seemed to agree on little but their condemnation of Although neither Christianity nor any other religion was a dominant force within socialist theory or politics, the connection between Christianity and socialism persisted through the 20th century. One Christian Socialist Movement in Britain, which Neither Tolstoy’s religion nor his Anarcho-communism took less-extreme forms in the hands of two later Russian émigrés, Marriage and Love” (1910) as an As the anarcho-communists argued for a form of socialism so decentralized that it required the abolition of the state, a milder and markedly centralist version of socialism, Fabianism, emerged in Britain. Fabian Socialism was so called because the members of the

Depending on whom you ask, socialism might be described as historically inevitable, evil incarnate, a utopian fantasy, or a scientific method. Most fundamentally, socialism is a political, philosophic, and economic system in which the means of production—that is, everything that goes into making goods for use—are collectively controlled, rather than owned by private corporations as they are under capitalism, or by aristocrats under feudalism. In seeking to make the case for socialism—and to understand impediments to a world governed by people’s needs rather than corporate profits—thinkers in the socialist tradition have grappled with topics as varied as colonialism, gender, race, art, sex, psychology, economics, medicine, ecology, and countless other issues. As such, this Reading List makes no claim of being exhaustive; rather, it seeks to achieve two modest goals: to acquaint readers with a handful of key socialist preoccupations, and to demonstrate how the core concepts of socialist thought have been articulated at different historical moments and taken up by women and people of color. Eugene W. Schulkind, “ French Historical Studies, (1960) What kind of society do socialists want? Many unfamiliar with the socialist tradition assume the Soviet Union or other putatively communist states represent socialist ideals come to fruition. But for many socialists throughout history, the most generative and compelling model is the seventy-two-day social experiment known as the Pari...

Biden’s disclaimer was aimed in part at appeasing moderate Democrats such as Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.), who exhorted caucus members last November to “not ever use the word ‘socialist’ or ‘socialism’ again” if they wanted to avoid being “torn apart” in 2022. What Does “Socialism” Mean in America? So what’s in a word? A lot, apparently. In 1888, the New England author Edward Bellamy published Looking Backward: 2000-1887, a utopian socialist novel depicting the benefits of a fully nationalized economy where production and distribution are controlled by the government. The book was a national bestseller, owing in part to Bellamy’s prudent use of the word “nationalism” in place of “socialism.” He wished to avoid the foreign (German and French) associations of the latter, fearing it would alienate his domestic readers. None of this is especially surprising. Socialism is an umbrella term that covers nearly two centuries of utopian visions, political and economic theories, philosophical and ideological perspectives, reformist and revolutionary movements, and systems of national governance. Democratic Socialism and Social Democracy In the short term, the common economic mission of democratic socialists and social democrats is to reform, rather than abolish, market capitalism within the context of liberal democracy. They differ in their longer-term aims and commitments. Presently, there are five members of the U.S. Congress who self-identify as democratic socialists, four in t...

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Socialism is a rich tradition of political thought and practice, the history of which contains a vast number of views and theories, often differing in many of their conceptual, empirical, and normative commitments. In his 1924 Dictionary of Socialism, Angelo Rappoport canvassed no fewer than forty definitions of socialism, telling his readers in the book’s preface that “there are many mansions in the House of Socialism” (Rappoport 1924: v, 34–41). To take even a relatively restricted subset of socialist thought, Leszek Kołakowski could fill over 1,300 pages in his magisterial survey of Main Currents of Marxism (Kołakowski 1978 [2008]). Our aim is of necessity more modest. In what follows, we are concerned to present the main features of socialism, both as a critique of capitalism, and as a proposal for its replacement. Our focus is predominantly on literature written within a philosophical idiom, focusing in particular on philosophical writing on socialism produced during the past forty-or-so years. Furthermore, our discussion concentrates on the normative contrast between socialism and capitalism as economic systems. Both socialism and capitalism grant workers legal control of their labor power, but socialism, unlike capitalism, requires that the bulk of the means of production workers use to yield goods and services be under the effective control of workers themselves, rather than in the hands of the members of a different, capitalist class under whose direction they mus...

©Gino Santa Maria/Shutterstock.com To access extended pro and con arguments, sources, and discussion questions, go to Socialism in the United States is an increasingly popular topic. Some argue that the country should actively move toward socialism to spur social progress and greater equity, while others demand that the country prevent this by any and all means necessary. This subject is often brought up in connection with universal healthcare and free college education, ideas that are socialist by definition, or as a general warning against leftist politics. While some politicians openly promote socialism or socialist policies (Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, for example), others reject the socialist label (now Vice President Kamala Harris said she was “not a Democratic Socialist” during the 2020 presidential campaign) or invoke it as a dirty word that is contrary to American ideals (in the To consider whether the United States should adopt socialism or at least more socialist policies, the relevant terms must first be defined. Socialismis an economic and social policy in which the public owns industry and products, rather than private individuals or corporations. Under socialism, the government controls most means of production and natural resources, among other industries, and everyone in the country is entitled to an equitable share according to their contribution to society. Individual private ownership is encouraged. Politically, s...