Definition of communism and socialism

 History of economic systems

Economic systems have always been closely linked to the intellectual trends prevailing throughout history closely explaining the relationship between the material side of individuals and the intangible aspect of their lives, and this divergence has come as a complex that goes in different directions, sometimes from thought to economics, and sometimes from matter to mind, Which leads to the conclusion that the different economic systems are not responsible for the production of thought as much as they are responsible for influencing and influencing the material aspects of human life, which makes the beholder clearly hints the effect of matter on individuals' thoughts and values, and in the intangible aspects of their lives. ^[1]

Man's ignorance of the concept of individual ownership and the distinctiveness of his thought in simplicity and primitiveness when exploiting natural forces such as rain, land and its crops was the reason for this society to be characterized by solidarity and communalism, in addition to that the inability of the individual to face the difficult conditions of life on his own, the lack of production and the absence of a productive surplus that allows the exploitation However, the development of the life system and the increase in the production of individuals beyond the level that meets their needs only allowed the wealthy to seek the help of the poor to invest what accumulated from their wealth - despite its limitations - which led to the shifting of the lifestyle from the primitive stage to new economic systems that was the beginning of the class division Humans, then a group of successive systems emerged, the first of which was the feudal system, the capitalist system, followed by the communist and socialist systems. ^[1]

Definition of communism and socialism

Definition of communism

Communism is defined as a political and economic doctrine that aims to enable collective control over the means of production after getting rid of the concept of private property and the concepts associated with it, as this type of economic thought came as a reversal of the concept of capitalist thought in which individuals compete for profits in a way that is driven by their strong desire to achieve their interests, And the collection of the largest amount of wealth, so the individuals themselves in this system control and manage the main means of production such as factories, mines and natural resources. ^[2]

The history of communism goes back to 1917, since the launch of Lenin's revolution in the Russian lands , when the Bolsheviks seized power and thus formed the first communist government that began to spread its ideas, while these communist ideas and principles spread to the lands of China, Cuba, Korea and other countries, and this wide extension continued to The years 1989 AD and 1990 AD led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the collapse of the Berlin Wall, and their political repercussions, which led to the decline of the communist system from most of the countries that had previously adopted this system, while only three of the countries are still governed by this system, such as China and Cuba to this day. ^[3]

Characteristics of Communism

The thinker Marx and Frederick Engels identified ten points in which he summarized the characteristics of the communist theory, among which were the following: ^[4]

• Abolishing the land ownership law, while the rents are allocated for public purposes.
• Confiscation of immigrants and rebels' property.
• Ensuring free education for all children in public schools, and eliminating child labor in factories.
• The task of cultivating wasted lands and improving agriculture falls to state factories and their production tools.
• The state has complete control over the means of communication and transportation.
• Abolition of the individual's right to inherit.

Definition of socialism

It is a movement that seeks to possess individuals of all production factors on an equal footing, and ensures that they obtain this ownership through a democratically elected government, or through a cooperative or public company, and that is through the shares these individuals have in it, and cooperative is the basis on which socialists are supposed to be established. Societies, while this type of system calls for the necessity of central planning necessary to lead the economy in countries to keep them from entering a state of economic chaos, ^{[5] and} thus socialism is considered a complete reversal of the concepts of capitalism that have achieved material gains for individuals while causing them greater moral losses Thus, it comes as an attempt to recover the human values ​​that were wasted by the capitalist systemBy making man a slave of the forces that he made with his own hands, socialist ideas aspire to re-impose man’s control over the very resources that once controlled him. ^[1]

The first ideas of socialism go back to the first third of the nineteenth century AD, when an Englishman named Owen warned about the injustice that workers suffer in the factory he was running and in other factories as a result of the loss of their efforts in favor of the owners of these factories. Therefore, while several thinkers such as Marx and Engels openly advocated and adopted socialist ideas, which contributed to their great spread among the countries of the world that some of them still adopt to this day. ^[6]

Characteristics of socialism

Socialism is characterized by a set of characteristics, namely:

• The emergence of socialist ideas in order to preserve the rights of the working classes in societies.
• Striving to achieve equality between individuals within the same society.
• Ensure that the control of the owners of capital is eliminated , and replace it with a set of rules that guarantee the preservation of the rights of the poor workers.
• Work to direct society to adhere to socialist policy as one of the main systems for building societies based on an intellectual system.
• Affecting the countries' economic system and replacing it with a socialist economic system, which contributes to the impact on the global economic system. ^[7]

The difference between communism and socialism

It is noted that there are a number of differences between communism and socialism, which can be classified as follows: ^[8]

The differences	Communism	Socialism
Principles and foundations	It depends directly on getting rid of the single authority that influences political decisions.	It seeks to provide all possible production tools and means for individuals so that they can work in production in a way that benefits them and society in general.
political system	There is no governing authority for the state, rather the people rule themselves by relying on the party system .	It depends on the existence of a ruling socialist system that provides coexistence among all members of society in a common way.
Economic system	All means of production are in the hands of individuals, taking care to eliminate any existence of private ownership of capital.	Public sector establishments acquire ownership of the means of production while striving to preserve the contribution of individuals in obtaining their equal shares of total public production.

References

1. ^ ^{A b T.} Fouad Zakaria (2017), the intellectual in various aspects of social systems , Egypt: Cairo: Hindawi CIC Foundation, page 9.10. Acted.
2. ↑ Terence Ball, Richard Dagger, "Communism" , www.britannica.com , Retrieved 2020-1-23. Edited.
3. ↑ "Communism Timeline" , www.history.com , Retrieved 2020-1-23. Edited.
4. ↑ KIMBERLY AMADEO (2019-10-30), "Communism, Its Characteristics, Pros, Cons, and Examples" , www.thebalance.com , Retrieved 2020-1-23. Edited.
5. ↑ KIMBERLY AMADEO (2020-1-21), "Socialism and Its Characteristics, Pros, Cons, Examples, and Types" , www.thebalance.com , Retrieved 2020-1-23. Edited.
6. ↑ Salama Musa (2012), Socialist , Egypt: Cairo: Hindawi Education and Culture, Page 10. Edited.
7. ↑ Albert Einstein (1-5-2009), "Why Socialism?" , MONTHLY REVIEW , Retrieved 25 October 2016 . Edited.
8. ↑ Amira Mustafa (8/29/2014), “A Comparison between Communism and Socialism , ” Politicians Post , reviewed on 25 October 2014. Acted.