Unit One > Ideologies in Brief

POLITICAL IDEOLOGIES IN BRIEF

 

 

 

The period following WWI was one of great upheaval, especially in the defeated powers.  Old forms of government were swept away, and new ones took their place, most notably Communism and Fascism.  Russia was the first to throw off autocracy, setting up the first Communist government in 1917.   Communist movements sprang up all over Europe in the wake of the Russian Revolution, producing a strong right-wing reaction.  Fascism developed, in part, in response to the rise of Communism, and the first Fascist government took power in Italy in 1922 under Mussolini.  Socialism, a less extreme form of left-wing doctrine, also gained in strength in the interwar period.  It is necessary to have some understanding of these political ideologies.

 

Democracy:

 

Literally, rule by the people.  In a democracy, power resides in the people, who elect representatives to govern on their behalf in a parliament, congress or legislature.  To be effective, a democracy must have:

·         free elections, open to the majority of the people, with a secret ballot, to protect voters from intimidation.  Elections must be frequent enough to be effective.

·         adequate choice between candidates and parties.  There has to be a realistic alternative to the existing government.

·         civil liberties, allowing citizens to campaign for the party of their choice without fear of punishment.

·         an effective legislature.  The elected body must have the power to pass laws, raise taxes, control the budget and criticize the party in power.  The concept of a Loyal Opposition is essential to democracy.

 

Democracy in one form or another existed in the main victorious powers such as the USA, Britain, France and Italy.  The defeated powers, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia, had been autocracies, which had to be replaced.  In Russia, this happened as a result of the Bolshevik revolution and the installation of  the first communist government.  The Austro-Hungarian Empire broke up into new nations, most of which set up democratic systems, most of which did not last very long.  In Germany, a new republican, democratic state was set up, called the Weimar Republic, which lasted until Hitler seized power in 1933.

 

Communism

 

Communism covers a wide range of doctrines, all stemming from the work of Karl Marx in the C19.  Marx was an economic determinist who developed a theory of history which he claimed was scientifically proven.  The basic elements of his theory were:

·         economic forces are the foundation on which society is built.

·         advances in the forces of production (i.e. scientific and technical knowledge) progress faster than social institutions, and this produces class conflict.  In the industrial age, the class conflict is between the capitalist employers (the bourgeoisie) and the working class  (the proletariat).

·         all history is the history of class struggle.  The capitalist phase of history will end when the proletariat rise up in revolt against the bourgeoisie and seize power.  Marx came to believe that such a revolution could not happen until a society had passed completely through the capitalist phase - in other words, that the revolution could not be rushed.

·         after the revolution, workers would govern workers, there would be a classless society, and the government would own the means of production.  In time, the need for government would wither away.

 

Marxism was significantly modified by Lenin, notably in his 1902 pamphlet entitled What is to be Done?  In it, he maintained that:

·         the revolution could only be brought about by an elite of professional revolutionaries.  The proletariat by itself would not bring it about.

·         it might not be necessary to wait until a society had passed entirely through its capitalist phase before starting the revolution.  A revolution might succeed in a more backward society,  such as Russia.

·         the revolutionary elite should infiltrate existing social and political organizations, and use spies and sabotage to undermine them.

 

Marx believed in the dictatorship of the proletariat.  Lenin believed in the dictatorship of the Communist Party and, by extension, the dictatorship of the leader of the Communist Party.  Hence, a party dedicated to the freedom of the individual worker and the classless society became a brutal dictatorship, first under Lenin, then Stalin.  Both leaders were quite ready to abandon Marxist principles if the situation demanded it, and did so frequently.

 

Fascism

 

Fascism is a totalitarian system of government led by a dictator, intensely nationalist, racist, militarist and imperialist.  The first fascist government was set up by Mussolini, quite legally, in Italy in 1922.  Italy was resentful that it had not received all the territory it had been promised by the Allies, nationalism was very strong, and there was a strong communist movement.  Italy was a democracy, although its system was weak, failing to produce effective governments.  The constitutional monarch, Victor Emmanuel III, was also weak, and allowed himself to be persuaded that if Mussolini was not made prime minister the communists might seize power.  Mussolini gradually consolidated his power so that by 1924 he was, in effect, dictator.  The basic beliefs of Fascism are:

·         irrationality.  Fascist doctrine is not based on reason, but emotional appeals to common blood, common territory and so on. 

·         denial of equality.  Fascists believe in the inequality of human beings and the superiority of the leader over the led, men over women, the winner over the loser and the strong over the weak.  They back this up with reference to a perversion of Darwin’s theory of evolution (the survival of the fittest) called Social Darwinism.

·         nationalism.  Fascists believe in the superiority of their own nation over others.

·         use of lies and violence.  Since Fascism denies the legitimacy of the opposition, the use of any means to defeat it, such as lies and violence, is justified.

·         the leadership principle.  Fascism is based on obedience to a strong leader who knows what is best for the people.

·         totalitarianism.  Since only the leader is fit to lead, it follows that the leader must exert total control to ensure that his policies are carried out, using whatever means are necessary.

·         racism and imperialism.  These follow logically from the fascist idea that one’s own nationality or race are superior to others, and that force is an acceptable tool.  It is then only a short step to the use of force in international relations.

 

Socialism

 

In the C19, the terms socialism and Marxism meant the same thing - belief in government ownership of the means of production and government control of the distribution of wealth.  Since then, socialism has come to mean a more moderate left-wing philosophy.  Its fundamental characteristics are:

·         acceptance of democratic government.

·         support of gradual, rather than revolutionary change.

·         acceptance of capitalism as the means of generating wealth.

·         belief in the redistribution of wealth by means of taxation.  That is, the government taxes the wealthy individuals and corporations, and uses the money to provide social  services which mainly benefit the less well-off.  The provision of such services as medical care, unemployment insurance and education at government expense is referred to as the welfare state.

·         belief in some government ownership of key industries.

 

Capitalism

 

Capitalism is an economic system, not a political ideology, but its principles are important.  Capitalism is based on the belief that individuals or companies should be able to invest money (capital) in business in the hope of making more money (profit).  The basic elements are:

·         private ownership.  In capitalism, the means of production are owned by private individuals or companies, not the government.  Any profit earned goes to those private individuals or companies.

·         a free market.  Businesses should function without restriction in the market place, governed only by the law of supply and demand.  The consumer also has free choice of what goods or services to buy, and by exercising that choice, determines which businesses will succeed and which fail.

·         competition.  In a free market, all businesses compete on an equal basis, and the less efficient fail, while the more efficient make profits.

 

Capitalism never functions totally without restriction.  Markets are never totally  free, and competition is never perfect.  Governments impose taxes and regulations on business, and some businesses may dominate their markets, limiting competition.  Nevertheless, capitalism in one form or another is the dominant economic system in the world today.