Marx, Marxist and Marxism

“All I know is that I am not a Marxist. God save me from my friends.”
- Karl Marx

Karl Marx! I hardly think that this name needs any introduction. For those, who still can’t associate this name, he is the person who challenged the already existing world order and thinking. He was no less than a revolution in himself. Marx traced the evolution of man in five stages:
1.Primitive Communism (when man was a food gatherer and hunter and, hence, no scarcity of resources).
2.Slavery or Slave Owning Society (when man began to have other men as slaves for his work).
3.Feudalism (when the haves were called Feudal Lord and the have-nots as Serfs).
4.Capitalism (the age of capitalists and the working class).
5.Communism.

Karl Marx was contemporary to the Capitalist society. Marx said that human evolution has been a sort of ‘negation of the negations’ when the previous set up of the society has been totally replaced by a new one. He based his theory only on the economic aspect of human life. Though this factor is not the only factor, yet his theory still convinces so many. The capitalists (Bourgeois) and the workers (Proletariats) of the capitalist society had their interests totally antagonistic to each other’s. Taking into consideration the circumstances of that time, when exploitation of workers was at the peak, Marx was never wrong to condemn the Capitalism. He not only detested Capitalism but also gave an alternative in the form of Communism.

Karl Marx kindled a feeling of self importance and fighting for one’s own rights in the Proletariat. I won’t mind in saying that it is only due to the enlightenment of the masses by Marx that today we talk about the welfare of workers. Marx was not pro-Proletariat of one nation. He actually believed in the Proletariats of the world. See how broad his vision was.

Marx’s Communism refers to an egalitarian society where the means of production will be owned by the society and the private property will be gone. It is based on the principle of ‘from everyone according to his abilities and to everyone according to his abilities’. In nutshell Communism is the ultimate goal of Marx’s theory. Marx predicted a revolution by the Proletariats of the world to establish Socialism. Socialism referred to state ownership of means of production. Though Marx proposed a revolution of the masses to counter the Bourgeois, he was also afraid of the Dictatorship of the Proletariats. It could lead to the exploitation of former Bourgeois. This, obviously, depicts the humanitarian aspect of this man.

Marxism, as the theory of Marx is known, is really the best political theory in the history of world politics.

But ‘to err is human…’ Marx’s ideas were pious and intentions, unbiased. The so called Marxists of the world could never do justice to them. We can learn from the example of Lenin, Stalin and Mao Ze Dong. It has been only because everyone of the so called Marxist tried to manipulate the original ideas of Marx as per his needs. Though some of the societies could reach the stage of socialism, communism is still a mirage in its real sense. Now, Communism is termed as a Utopian idea.

Even if we talk about our country, India, almost every Marxist leader is having an industrialist in his home. They talk about Marxism, even preach it… but who will dare to follow it in the real sense. West Bengal, which is considered to be the most communist of all Indian states, is witnessing the Nandigram. Marx never talked about any such method. He never mentioned about having any Marxist party with various levels of organization. The present Marxists are in real sense not the Marxists, but the Lenin and Mao of present world. Marx is just a mascot of earning goodwill. Power, really, corrupts a man.

I want to mention that, given the complexities of the present world, it is not hard to follow Marxism but it is also just impossible to establish the real Communism. Let us start living in the present world where all what is required is a perfect blend of Marxism and Liberalism.