Socialism Key Thinkers auto

Practice question-and-answer flashcards covering five key socialist thinkers: Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, Rosa Luxemburg, Beatrice Webb, Anthony Crosland, and Anthony Giddens.

Which 1848 work by Marx and Engels provided a radical reinterpretation of history and a revolutionary model for a utopian society?

The Communist Manifesto

According to Marx and Engels, what transitional phase occurs after the proletariat overthrows capitalism?

The dictatorship of the proletariat

Why did Marx and Engels refer to liberal democracy as a 'democratic swindle'?

Because the state was controlled by the bourgeoisie.

What institutions and mechanisms did Marx and Engels claim state and society used to weaken class consciousness?

Religion, patriotism, enfranchisement, parliament and social reforms

According to Marx and Engels, what will happen to the state after capitalism is overthrown?

The state will wither away and a stateless communist society will emerge based on common ownership.

What was Rosa Luxemburg's key work published in 1913?

'The Accumulation of Capital'

Why did Rosa Luxemburg argue that Marx's historical materialism idea was flawed?

She argued capitalism does not need to reach a 'final stage' before it can be abolished, meaning communist revolutions could happen in less economically developed societies.

How did Rosa Luxemburg challenge Lenin's belief in a 'vanguard elite'?

She argued that class consciousness will develop 'spontaneously' as the proletariat struggle for workplace reforms and democracy, with mass strike action helping develop the revolutionary state.

What is Beatrice Webb's concept of 'the inevitability of gradualness'?

An evolutionary socialist belief that parliamentary democracy and not revolution will deliver the inevitable socialist society.

Why did Beatrice Webb reject revolutions in favor of evolutionary socialism?

She believed revolutions are 'chaotic, inefficient and counter productive' and had an 'unpredictability' that she could not tolerate.

Which 1909 report by Beatrice Webb argued for a 'national minimum of civilised life'?

'The Minority Report of the Poor Law Commission'

According to Beatrice Webb, who would organize the socialist society under an expanded state?

A highly trained technocratic elite of administrators and specialists who would 'impregnate all the existing focus of society'.

Which 1956 book by Anthony Crosland influenced social democracy within the UK?

'The Future of Socialism'

What economic approach did Anthony Crosland argue best served socialism rather than public ownership?

The 'state-managed capitalism' of a mixed economy, enabled by Keynesian economics.

How did Anthony Crosland describe the existing school system in Britain?

'The most divisive, unjust and wasteful of all the social aspects of inequality'

What are the two key publications by Anthony Giddens cited in the notes?

'Beyond Left and Right' (1994) and 'The Third Way: The Renewal of Social Democracy' (1998)

How does Anthony Giddens's Third Way view individuals within society?

As stakeholders with both rights and responsibilities.

Under Anthony Giddens's Third Way, how is greater equality of opportunity funded?

Via prudent taxation of free-market wealth.

What active welfare policies does Anthony Giddens support to facilitate social inclusiveness?

Providing wider opportunities for the disadvantaged through increased access to higher education and replacing comprehensives with academy schools.