Marx on direct democracy

[Искра]

Could you help me where to look, or better to say - what to read, regarding Marx and his views on direct (workers) democracy.

Thx.

[Broletariat]

I would suggest Marx's writings on the Paris Commune

[syndicat]

Marx never advocated direct democracy. In Civil War in France he talks about the elected city council, not the direct democracy of the neighborhood assemblies who elected the city council members.

[Искра]

Marx never advocated direct democracy. In Civil War in France he talks about the elected city council, not the direct democracy of the neighborhood assemblies who elected the city council members.
That's why I also wrote workers in ( )... :)

Maybe direct democracy is not the right term to use. Maybe I should wrote something like radical democracy, workers democracy, etc.... I mean on his vision of democratic development within society.

[Broletariat]

While we're on the subject of democracy, I would also like to recommend Bordiga's The Democratic Principle

[Искра]

While we're on the subject of democracy, I would also like to recommend Bordiga's The Democratic Principle

Thank you. I have ICC's book about Italian left on my reading list. I just need to finish Marx and Rosa, before I can read it :)

[The Idler]

Seconded The Civil War in France. Especially Engels dismissal of Blanquism in the preface.

[el_chavista]

This text from IDEAS OF LEADERSHIP AND DEMOCRACY by W P COCKSHOTT is very thoughtful:



The immediate aim of the Communists is the same as that of all other proletarian parties: formation of the proletariat into a class, overthrow of the bourgeois supremacy,conquest of political power by the proletariat.
.......
We have seen above, that the first step in the revolution by the working class is to raise the proletariat to the position of ruling class to win the battle of democracy.
These passages are very important. In the first we see that the Communists considered that the proletariat was not yet a class. It was to be be formed as a distinct class in society by the process of political struggle.
It was only this process of struggle that would make a mass of individuals act in a collective way for their common interest. Both passages repeat the idea that the proletariat must conquer political power, that it must become the ruling class. But more surprisingly, the raising of the proletariat to the position of ruling class is identified with with the winning of democracy.
Needless to say, respectable opinion today sees democracy as being very different from proletarian rule. But 160 years ago words had a rather different meaning. To the upper classes, democracy and mob rule were synonymous. What educated people then thought of democracy was still heavily influenced by the ancient Greek authors, who were more widely read than they are now. Aristotle had said that democracy did not mean majority rule. Instead it meant rule by the poor1! Marx, key author of the Manifesto and holder of a Doctorate in classical philosophy, well aware of Aristotle’s definition, is using it in practice.

[Искра]

Could you give me whole text? :)