Socialism
A political and economic theory of social organisation which advocates for the means of
production and distribution to be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.
Collective ownership of the means of production would therefore mean fairly shared profits and
no worker exploitation.
Supporters argue socialism is needed because…
To stop exploitation of working classes
Make people think as an individual
Capitalism encourages exploitation due to its focus on profit-making, and o shoring to
places of lower standards and union costs.
Strands and Associated Thinker:
Fundamentalist Revolutionary Socialism Marx and Engles
Socialism Rosa Luxemburg
Evolutionary Socialism Beatrice Webb
Revisionist Third Way Anthony Giddens
Socialism Social Democrats Anthony Crossland
Human Nature
Most socialists argue human nature is shaped by society and social relations.
Marx sees human nature as altruistic but distorted by capitalism
Agreement
All strands have an optimistic view of human nature – they believe humans are
naturally co-operative and communal. We are inclined to work together for the
common good of humanity.
Human nature can be changed and is malleable, therefore can be improved for
the better.
Disagreement
How capitalism impacts human nature:
Revolutionary socialists like Marx and Engles believe capitalism is dangerous
and distorting, as it is alienating us from our species essence
Webb (evo.) agreed that capitalism can have a corrupting e ect on
human nature
BUT Third Way socialists like Giddens argue capitalism best suits our nature (as
we are individualistic and communal) and is so deeply embedded that we should
build upon it rather than remove it.
, Society & Equality (Equality in societies and how equal
societies should be achieved)
Marx argues society is created and shaped by our economic conditions.
Society should be based on equality, but the extent of this equality depends on
the strand.
There are disagreements over how this inequality should be overcome.
Agreement:
All believe that individuals are shaped by their society, and as a result, all socialists
share a concern about the societal impact of capitalism, and the class divisions that
arise from it.
All want to promote greater equality and social justice but di erent branches have
di erent understandings of these terms – see below.
All socialists agree that social class is a ected by capitalism and that class inequality
should be improved
Disagreement:
How to analyse class
o Revolutionary socialists focus on the bourgeoisie vs the proletariat.
o Social democrats argue capitalism has changed since Marx
How to improve class relations
o Revolutionaries believe the only way is to end capitalism, where as
o Social democrats argue capitalism should be managed and regulated to
improve equality.
How to overcome inequality
o Revolutionaries/Marxist view is to transition to a communist society. This
would entail to the abolition of private property, the class system and
capitalism.
Rosa Luxembourg agreed with Marx and Engles that the only way
to create a more just society was to remove capitalism as the
economic mode of production
o Social democrats such as Crosland reject the revolutionary view – instead
they argue capitalism can be used as a tool to produce more equality if
managed e ectively. Crosland argues that capitalism has radically
changed over the last few hundred years, and to attempt to view it through
a Marxist lens is limiting and misguiding. Instead, capitalism can be
controlled by the state to raise living standards through welfare measures,
government spending and progressive taxation.
o Gidden’s third way advocates more welfare spending (equality of
opportunity) rather than focusing on equality of outcome. We must seek
A political and economic theory of social organisation which advocates for the means of
production and distribution to be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.
Collective ownership of the means of production would therefore mean fairly shared profits and
no worker exploitation.
Supporters argue socialism is needed because…
To stop exploitation of working classes
Make people think as an individual
Capitalism encourages exploitation due to its focus on profit-making, and o shoring to
places of lower standards and union costs.
Strands and Associated Thinker:
Fundamentalist Revolutionary Socialism Marx and Engles
Socialism Rosa Luxemburg
Evolutionary Socialism Beatrice Webb
Revisionist Third Way Anthony Giddens
Socialism Social Democrats Anthony Crossland
Human Nature
Most socialists argue human nature is shaped by society and social relations.
Marx sees human nature as altruistic but distorted by capitalism
Agreement
All strands have an optimistic view of human nature – they believe humans are
naturally co-operative and communal. We are inclined to work together for the
common good of humanity.
Human nature can be changed and is malleable, therefore can be improved for
the better.
Disagreement
How capitalism impacts human nature:
Revolutionary socialists like Marx and Engles believe capitalism is dangerous
and distorting, as it is alienating us from our species essence
Webb (evo.) agreed that capitalism can have a corrupting e ect on
human nature
BUT Third Way socialists like Giddens argue capitalism best suits our nature (as
we are individualistic and communal) and is so deeply embedded that we should
build upon it rather than remove it.
, Society & Equality (Equality in societies and how equal
societies should be achieved)
Marx argues society is created and shaped by our economic conditions.
Society should be based on equality, but the extent of this equality depends on
the strand.
There are disagreements over how this inequality should be overcome.
Agreement:
All believe that individuals are shaped by their society, and as a result, all socialists
share a concern about the societal impact of capitalism, and the class divisions that
arise from it.
All want to promote greater equality and social justice but di erent branches have
di erent understandings of these terms – see below.
All socialists agree that social class is a ected by capitalism and that class inequality
should be improved
Disagreement:
How to analyse class
o Revolutionary socialists focus on the bourgeoisie vs the proletariat.
o Social democrats argue capitalism has changed since Marx
How to improve class relations
o Revolutionaries believe the only way is to end capitalism, where as
o Social democrats argue capitalism should be managed and regulated to
improve equality.
How to overcome inequality
o Revolutionaries/Marxist view is to transition to a communist society. This
would entail to the abolition of private property, the class system and
capitalism.
Rosa Luxembourg agreed with Marx and Engles that the only way
to create a more just society was to remove capitalism as the
economic mode of production
o Social democrats such as Crosland reject the revolutionary view – instead
they argue capitalism can be used as a tool to produce more equality if
managed e ectively. Crosland argues that capitalism has radically
changed over the last few hundred years, and to attempt to view it through
a Marxist lens is limiting and misguiding. Instead, capitalism can be
controlled by the state to raise living standards through welfare measures,
government spending and progressive taxation.
o Gidden’s third way advocates more welfare spending (equality of
opportunity) rather than focusing on equality of outcome. We must seek
