Socialism overview

Socialism

What is Capitalism?

Capitalism is the private ownership of
the means of production in a
free-market, where the priority is profit.

This system can lead to a small group of
people amassing a large sum of wealth
and influence over the working class,
who have little wealth and influence.

The system in which people fight for
control over the market with some
gaining power and some losing power is
called Social Darwinism

What is Socialism?

Socialism is a political and economic philosophy
by which the people own and control the means
of production, not private owners.

The means of production are the parts of how
things are produced, such as land, labor, capital,
and technology.

The government, not single individuals, will
control the economy.

The economy shifts focus from profits to the
direct benefit of the people.

Karl Marx

Marx lived in Prussia during the First
Industrial Revolution and saw great inequality
between factory workers and factory owners.

Wanting to see these classes be removed and
all people to reap the benefit of their work,
Marx worked with Friedrich Engels to write
the “Communist Manifesto”, establishing
Communism and Socialism as defined
ideologies.

Marx wrote of the working class Proletariat
overthrowing the ruling class Bourgeoisie in a
revolution in order to achieve the social and
economic justice required to achieve a
socialist society.

Socialism vs Communism

Socialism is a system where the state, or other
apparatus representing the people, controls the
economy and all production that occurs under it,
using those systems to directly benefit the
people.

Communism is the next step of socialism,
erasing the state to create a classless, stateless
society that is solely focused on the betterment
of the people.

In reality, there is very little difference between
Communism and Socialism and the terms are
used interchangeably throughout history.

Socialism in the 20th Century

The first socialist country in history is the
Soviet Union, which formed in 1922.

Socialism spread to China, North Korea,
Cuba, Vietnam, and dozens of other
nations under the influence of the Soviet
Union.

After WW2, the US and its capitalist
allies were locked in an ideological battle
known as the Cold War, vying for
influence and control over the world for
the betterment of their system.

Socialism Today

After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991,
the only main socialist nations left in the
world are China, Vietnam, North Korea,
and Cuba.

Some of these nations, like China, have
adopted some capitalist practices like
market trading, but still practice
socialism politically to this day,
professing their efforts to be for the
betterment of the people.

Multiple Choice

Socialism is:

• A system of private ownership in a free market economy.

• A system where the people own the means of production.

• A system where people fight for control over the market with some gaining power and some losing power.

Multiple Choice

In his book "The Communist Manifesto", Karl Marx wrote about:

• The need for the proletariat to accept capitalism as the correct system of ownership.

• The need for the proletariat to peacefully protest the bourgeoisie to get some labor rights.

• The need for the proletariat to overthrow the bourgeoisie to achieve socialism.

Multiple Choice

Modern socialist countries today include:

• United States, France, Germany, Mexico

• Soviet Union, Poland, Hungary, China

• China, Cuba, North Korea, Hungary

• China, Cuba, Vietnam, North Korea

Multiple Choice

What is the Proletariat?

• The ruling class that owns all production means.
• A group of individuals who do not work and live off investments.
• The middle class that manages production and labor.
• The working class that sells labor and does not own production means.

Multiple Choice

There is absolutely no difference between Socialism and Communism.

• True

• False