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This is a blog for a community of students in Sociology 101A: "Sociological Theory," in the Department of Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley, Fall, 2008.
Welcome!
This is the informal blog spot for errant questions, random ramblings, and clever musings. For the rest of the semester, we'll use this blog to clarify the work(s) of Lenin, Gramsci and Fanon. Feel free to endlessly post, and don't forget: Theory Rocks!
Will Obama bring the U.S. closer to socialism?
Obama: A Traditional or Organic Intellectual?
Grappling with Gramsci
"The mode of being of the new intellectual can no longer consist in eloquence, which is an exterior and momentary mover of feelings and passions, but in active participation in practical life, as constructor, organizer, 'permanent persuader' and not just a simple orator (but superior at the same time to the abstract mathematical spirit) ..." (Prison Notebooks, 10).
"The relationship between the intellectuals and the world of production is not as direct as it is with the fundamental social groups but is, in varying degrees, 'mediated' by the whole fabric of society and by the complex of superstructures, of which the intellectual are, precisely, the 'functionaries'" (Prison Notebooks 12).
"The superstructure of civil society are like the trench-systems of modern warfare. In war it would sometimes happen that a fierce artillery attack seemed to have destroyed the outer perimeter; and at the moment of their advance and attack the assailants would find themselves confronted by a line of defense which was still effective" (Prison Notebooks 235).
"The massive structures of modern democracies, both as State organizations, and as complexes of associations in civil society, constitute for the art of politics as it were the 'trenches' and the permanent fortifications of the front in the war of position ..." (Prison Notebooks 243).
"... [I]t is obvious that all the essential questions of sociology are nothing other than the questions of political science" (Prison Notebooks 244).
"As long as the class-State exists the regulated society cannot exist, other than metaphorically---i.e. only in the sense that the class-State too is a regulated society" (Prison Notebooks 257).
What did you think of the Rosa Luxemburg film?
Oh No He Didn't: Endless, Evolving and Perplexing Lenin Quotables
"We are in favour of a democratic republic as the best form of state for the proletariat under capitalism" (The State and Revolution, 323).
"Simultaneously with an immense expansion of democracy, which for the first time become democracy for the poor, democracy for the people, and not democracy for the money-bags, the dictatorship of the proletariat imposes a series of restrictions on the freedom of the oppressors, the exploiters, the capitalists. We must suppress them in order to free humanity from wage slavery, their resistance must be crushed by force; it is clear that there is no freedom and no democracy where there is suppression and where there is violence" (The State and Revolution, 373).
"The expression 'the state withers away' is very well chosen, for it indicates both the gradual and the spontaneous nature of the process. Only habit can, and undoubtedly will, have such an effect ..." (The State and Revolution, 374).
What did you think of Salt of the Earth?
Who got it right?
Blog Archive
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2008
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November
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- A Different Wretched of the Earth!
- Fanon in Context
- Frantz Fanon
- The Thousand Threads and Obama's Economic Advisors
- Theory Barocks Assignment
- Rosa Luxemburg
- The revolutionary visions of Rosa Luxemberg
- Rosa Luxemburg's Fight for Revolution
- Will Obama bring the U.S. closer to socialism?
- Is Obama connected to the state with a thosuand th...
- Lenin on Obama
- Lenin's view of Obama
- Theory BAROCKS!!!
- Lenin and Obama
- Lenin: "Obama and his capitalist tendencies"
- Lenin and Obama,
- Thousand Threads Remain
- Baracks Assignment
- Theory Barocks
- The "Revolutionary" Question
- Lenin says...
- Lenin on Obama
- Lenin on Obama's Victory
- Obama and Lenin
- What would Lenin say about Obama's Victory....
- Lenin vs Obama
- Revolutionary Transitions: Luxemburg and Lenin
- Luxemburg & Lenin
- Lenin believes that Obama’s.....
- what would lenin say
- Obama and Lenin
- Traditional vs. Organic
- Traditional vs. Organic
- Thousand Threads Connected to Congress Too?
- Gramsci on Luxemburg
- Sounds like a Gramsci Studybreak!
- Jeopardy Question: Class in Itself
- Luxemburg meets Burawoy
- Vida de Gramsci
- yay for today's debate!!!
- 1981 PATCO Strike
- Kropotkin's Letter to Lenin
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November
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3 comments:
Rosa Luxemburg was a socialist and a revolutionist who firmly believed that a mass strike was necessary for a revolution. She felt it was time for a revolution for the Germans and the only way to get there is through class struggle. She believed a revolution against the government would give power and control to the working class, so they could work collectively and voice their needs. Kautsky and Bernstein were reformists who were part of the German Social Democratic Party that were against Luxemburg’s idea of revolution. Bernstein didn’t believe capitalism would produce a crisis because people would conform and capitalism would just evolve into socialism. Kautsky believed that it wasn’t time for a revolution because the conditions weren’t present. The forces of production weren’t developed and having a revolution too early would be disastrous.
The German Social Democratic party supported the war even when Luxemburg opposed it. They didn’t support Luxemburg because they didn’t want to risk everything they worked for. Kautsky and Bernstein were sucked into the ideas of the government and developed their own interests because the power they gained made them reform. Since Luxemburg and the party differed in opinions, they had her and Karl Liebknecht killed because they opposed the party’s interests.
Marx and Luxemburg believed that revolution occurred during class struggle and crisis of overproduction and there needed to be a revolution for the working class to overthrow the state. The working class would organize and work collectively because they would realize the state was unnecessary and develop a planned economy where the proletariats would form their own government. The difference is that Marx sees communism after a revolution and she sees socialism. Luxemburg and Lenin both agree on a revolution, but have different ideas of when they occur. Lenin believed that there could be a revolution even if the forces of production weren’t developed, but Luxemburg believed it occurred during class struggle and crisis like Marx.
Luxemburg shared some similar ideas with the other theorists, but also very opposite opinions. Unfortunately, the German Social Democratic party was against her because they fell into the traps of the government, but she stayed strong and continued to believe a revolution would lead them to socialism.
I find the last portion of what you said interesting, when you wrote "she stayed strong and continued to believe a revolution would lead them to socialism." My impression of Rosa was that she became revolutionarily pessimistic once the SDP voted for war, thereby going against everything she believed in. Though she maintained her position
after and led a newspaper, they didn't manage to get very far against the new regime, and in fact, it seemed that after WWI, as someone who was known to be well attuned to the people, Rosa no longer saw room for a revolution to take place - their time (between 1905-1910) had passed. So, although we remember Rosa as a strong and passionate revolutionary, I felt that she slowed down after her party abandoned her. She still wanted Socialism, but it was no longer appropriate
timing.
I enjoyed reading your post because I didn't see the Rosa Luxemberg video and these ideas were new to me. I think you did a good job of providing an overview of her ideas couched within theory. "Luxemburg and Lenin both agree on a revolution, but have different ideas of when they occur. Lenin believed that there could be a revolution even if the forces of production weren’t developed, but Luxemburg believed it occurred during class struggle and crisis like Marx." - a great summary for me. Thanks.
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