art

[redcannon]

is there a form of communism that promots freedom of expression and artistic liberty? I know Maoism was against it, even though i personally think Maoism was a perverse interpretation of communism that gave the state all the power and ended up feeding the global capitalist machine.

[bezdomni]

is there a form of communism that promots freedom of expression and artistic liberty?
Try all of them. If it is communism, it promotes liberty.


I know Maoism was against it
Maoism as an ideology is 100% in favor of free expression. However, the same cannot be said for the Chinese bureaucracy.


even though i personally think Maoism was a perverse interpretation of communism that gave the state all the power and ended up feeding the global capitalist machine.

This has nothing to do with your question, but it really is not. Many parts of Maoism are simply logical extentions from Marxism-Leninism. I wouldn't necessarily classify myself as a Maoist, but Mao certainly made some important contributions to communist theory.

I think you might want to increase your understanding of Maoism and Chinese history. I'd suggest beginning with reading Mao.

[Fawkes]

Like SovietPants said, most of them are with the exception of some ideologies that can't even really be considered communism.

Edit: P.S. SovietPants: is/was Red Army Vodka a real thing?

[lonebullet]

This is interesting. I actually have had the same question as my comrade RedCannon here. I know that in Stalinist Russia, the government implimented Socialist Realism as their state-accepted and funded style and heavily discouraged and censored other works, but then again, this is Stalinism we're talking about. Not really communism.

I also am a little dark on the subject of Maoism. Care to elaborate?

[Vargha Poralli]

I also am a little dark on the subject of Maoism. Care to elaborate?

No one can elaborate simply as it is most controversial thing so pls do a research on your own.

For Starters Wiki entry of Maoism (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maoism)

Mao's selected works (http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/mao/selected-works/index.htm)
Yes i agree it is pretty big list but essential if you really want to understand what Maoism is.

What Mao wrote in those volumes watered down in a Nutshell. (http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/mao/works/red-book/index.htm)

[redcannon]

my little bit on Mao was very off topic, i know. what i was really asking was if there was any form of communism that took artistic freedom as a very high priority. I know that in the socialist countrys such as the former USSR and Maoist China, as well as cuba and North Korea, such practices as speaking out against the government and creating certain art forms were punished by exile or inprisonment.

[bezdomni]

SovietPants: is/was Red Army Vodka a real thing?

Yes. :D

http://www.clubedavodka.com.br/imagens_vodka/Red%20Army%20Vodka%20-%20russia.JPG

Red Army Vodka Homepage (http://www.redarmy.com/home.htm)

Very delicious stuff.


I know that in Stalinist Russia, the government implimented Socialist Realism as their state-accepted and funded style and heavily discouraged and censored other works, but then again, this is Stalinism we're talking about. Not really communism.


Well, the main point to understand about art in the USSR is that the goal was to encourage a truly proletarian art style that is completely opposed to the boureois artforms. The problem with the Soviet State was that it was eventually no longer directly serving the interests of the proletariat class, so the "proletariat art" that the Soviet State wanted to see was contrary to the actual art of the proletariat. The problem was the re-emergence of the bourgeoisie in the party and in the state, which lead to the eventual suppression of the proletariat.

The same thing happened in China. The bourgeoisie re-emerged in the party, fought against the Maoists and suppressed the proletariat class and their art.


I also am a little dark on the subject of Maoism. Care to elaborate?

What separates Maoism from traditional Marxism-Leninism is the emphasis on Protracted People's War and the peasantry. There is a thread in Learning on Maoism. Maybe you should check that out?

The links posted by g-ram are good too.

[Janus]

what i was really asking was if there was any form of communism that took artistic freedom as a very high priority
No, not really. Since communism has been most "successful" in developing nations, economic and political freedom are usually bigger issues than art which many communists probably saw as bourgeois decadence anyways.