Socialism Vs. Communism

Socialism and communism are two political theories that both share a similar goal. These types of government have ruling based on the idea of sharing and “collective ownership” (Bentley G-9). The difference between the two is how things get done. Socialism is a slower process of change by the means of production, while communism tries to change things with violence and revolution. Karl Marx was one of the first to start the idea of socialism because he wanted to get rid of the class system and capitalism. Vladimir Lenin was a political leader of Russia in the early 1900s and had some of the same views as Marx. He did not want a revolution like the Americans or the French had, he simply wanted the working class Russians to start their own political

The pamphlet he wrote was his way expressing his views to the public. He believed that “all society is more and more splitting up into two opposing camps, into two great hostile classes: the bourgeoisie and the proletariat” (Blaisdell 126). The bourgeoisie were the members of society were power hungry and only wanted more money. Marx explained in detail the way of the bourgeoisie people and how they would destroy anything in their way if it meant something for them to gain. The proletariat class was known as the “slum population” (Blaisdell 134). These people worked for the bourgeoisie class and according to Marx, they would be able to rise above because they have become a majority group, meaning there are so many of them. Marx envisioned a revolution where the proletariat would eliminate the bourgeoisie because their rule was “no longer compatible with that of society” (Blaisdell 135). Vladimir Lenin also believed that a revolution should take place, however, his views were a little different. While Marx believed that the proletariat class could start a revolution and overthrow the bourgeoisie, Lenin believed the process to be more thought out and one that would take time. According to Lenin, “without revolutionary theory there can be no revolutionary movement” (Lenin 25). Unlike Marx, Lenin wrote What Is To Be Done? specifically for the people of Russia and he felt that if the

The idea of socialism is essentially the idea of sharing throughout a community and a Social Welfare State is one that the government economically helps the people of their “state”. Although both concepts are not the same, both want a way to share the wealth to the people. Marx’s ideas may have been centered on revolution but it influenced the Western nations in the 20th century. Even though these nations did not exactly overthrow another class, social welfare became a huge part in politics and the economy. Both of these writers had a huge influence on political and economical changed for “the proletariats” in their time periods. Marx tried to follow through with the works of his pamphlet and lead a revolution to “seize control of the state, confiscate the means of productions, and distribute wealth equitably throughout society” but it inevitably did not happen until 1917 (Bentley 669). When Lenin started his revolution for communism, he wanted to show the working class in Russia that a good leader was the key to a great revolution. Both of these writers were not writing fantasies. They both could have sat back and hoped their ideas would come to life, but instead they took action and revolutionized what they believed in. Even though some of their ways of doing things was not liked by others, they still did what they believed was the way