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Socialism
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A thorough summary of the chapter of Socialism including core ideas, different types of socialism and socialist view on human nature, society, state and economy.
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SocialismCore ideas
Collectivism It maintains that humans can achieve their political, social and economic objectives more effectively through
collective action rather than through individual effort. Collectivism reflects the socialists view that its more
important to pursue the interests of a society/community rather than individual self-interest.
*humans are tied together by the bonds of fraternity (=’brotherhood’, humans bound together by
comradeship and a common outlook because they share the same basic nature and interests while
difference due to class, religion, nationality and ethnic background are far less significant)
Socialists support collectivism for two reasons:
1. from a moral perspective, the interests of the group should take priority over the individual self-
interest. Collective effort encourages social unity/sense of social responsibility towards others
2. collectivism utilizes the capability of the whole of society efficiently, avoiding the wastefulness and
limited impact of competitive individual effort
Different strands of socialism vary in their commitment to collectivism
Marxists/ state socialists: advocate collective action through a centralized state that organizes all (or nearly
all) production and distribution.
Moderate socialists: accept some degree of free market capitalism in the economy – have pursued
collectivism in a more limited way
Most common forms of socialist collectivism
healthcare – national health service funded from general taxation provides free care based on need
industrial relations – workers organized in trade unions with bargaining rights over terms +
conditions
housing – subsidized homes provided by local government
education – state runs the school system which is free + available to everyone
industry – key industries under state control to operate in the national interests
Criticisms of collectivism
1. collectivism emphasizes group action/common interests – suppresses human individuality and
diversity
2. as collectivism objectives can only really be advanced through the agency of the state it leads to the
growth of arbitrary (tyrannical) state power and the erosion of individual freedoms
Since the 1970s, socialists generally have attached less importance to collectivism. This is due to a growing
perception that collectivism was producing a dependency culture.
Common Socialists see humans as social creatures with a tendency towards cooperation, sociability and nationality –
humanity humans naturally prefer to cooperate with rather than compete against each other.
Humans are naturally inclined to work together for the common good and cooperative behaviour produces
the best results for society. Cooperation reflects the idea of a common humanity, in both moral and
economic terms. People who cooperate with each other form connections based on understanding, respect
and mutual support.
, Moral incentive
Capitalist economic competition sets one person against another, encourages people to reject or disregard
their common humanity. Human motivation can be driven not just by material considerations but also by a
moral view of people’s role in society. People should work hard in order to improve their society or
community because they have a sense of responsibility for other humans particularly the least fortunate.
The moral incentive to improve society rests on the acceptance of a common humanity.
State:
The belief in a common humanity has led socialists to support an interventionists role for the state. Marxists
argued that the agency of the state can be used to control economic production and distribution for the
benefit of everyone. Social Democrats also advocate sate intervention, in the more limited form of welfare
and redistribution programmes.
Equality Socialists are egalitarians, believing that equality is a core political principle and an aspect of our human
nature
Social equality – equality of outcome is the fundamental value of socialism
1. ensures fairness ⇒ socialism tends to reject equality of opportunity because it justifies the unequal
treatment of people on the grounds of innate ability
2. reinforces collectivism ⇒ social equality reinforces collectivism, cooperation and solidarity (unity) in
society and the economy. Human beings are more likely to coexist harmoniously in society and work
together for the common economic good if they share the same social and economic conditions.
3. is a means of satisfying basic human needs ⇒ free market driven by profit motive cannot allocate
wealth and resources fairly to all members of society. Only the redistributive mechanism of the state
can provide for everyone, irrespective of social position
Debates about extent to which social and economic equality can/should be achieved
Revolutionary socialists (Marxists):
Demand absolute equality for everyone in terms of material rewards and life opportunities. This can be
guaranteed only by the controlled distribution of goods and services, the abolition of private property and
the introduction of common ownership of all means of production. Under this system, the state exercises
common ownership and supervises the distribution of resources to prevent the return of social and
economic inequality.
Social Democrats
Call for more limited state intervention to achieve relative equality within society via welfare measures,
government spending (Keynesian economics) and progressive taxation. Their aim is to remove absolute
poverty (achieve social justice) and if this can be achieved then a certain level of inequality can be
tolerated. State does not own or control all the means of production – its role is to adjust distribution to
narrow differences in wealth and life chances.
Common ownership: private property has several important drawbacks.
– As wealth is created by the collective effort of humans it should be owned collectively not by individuals/
private property encourages materialism/private property brings social conflict between ‘have’ and ‘have
not’ groups.
Marxists ⇒ private property should be abolished entirely and replaced with common ownership
Social Democrats ⇒ should be applied in a more limited way
Third Way ⇒ less emphasis in common ownership in favour of other objectives
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