Communism and its Unfortunate Flaw :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

Communism and its Unfortunate Flaw Throughout the course of history, colonies, city-states, and countries alike have attempted different forms of government. From monarchies to anarchies, it has remained clear what manner of government works best, both for the economy and the people- a capitalist society. Capitalism breeds competition and individual accomplishments. Unfortunately Karl Marx did not feel this way when he published his short piece, The Communist Manifesto, a cry for all those in favor of a communist world to stand up and unite. According to Marx, the capitalist form of government "has torn away from the family its sentimental veil, and has reduced the family relation to a mere money relation" (82). He goes on to describe more of these crimes the government, notably the bourgeoisie, has inflicted upon the populace, the proletariat. Yet Marx proves to over-generalize himself on a majority of issues. Although communism is itself almost infallible theoretically, it simply cannot exist in the overwhelmingly competitive, capitalist world that exists today. George O rwell's Animal Farm is an exceptional example that illustrates the faults of communism. In this fictional tale similar to the Russian Revolution of the early 1900's, a group of farm animals overthrows its corrupt farmer and forms its own society. The parallels to communism become clear as all animals are made equal and work toward the same goal of building their farm. Unfortunately, human nature and competition sink in, as the intelligent pigs become the all-knowing leaders. This is not so much to say that competition is a negative aspect of the economy; on the contrary, it has been very much an overall positive influence. Communism also does not take into account that human nature has a tendency to create competition. People strive to do their best, for when they do they are most often rewarded. Communism does no such thing, and provides for one of the main flaws that attributes to its failure. In Marx's ideal communist world, the entire populace is equal, and shares everything. There is no competition, and no one is rewarded more or less based on his or her individual achievement. Yet with this newfound sense of a worldwide sharing, there, in theory, is no poverty or hunger.