Popular Knowledge of Theory

[Revolutionary Souljah]

Just wanted to offer some good questions for people to think about and THEN respond to.

Question #1:
Will the majority of workers need to be educated in revolutionary theory before the revolution happens? (I'm not refering to things that can be simple explained or seen through material conditions. I'm speaking of less tangible concepts such as reification, etc.)


if you think so...

Question #2:
Is it possible (or even necessary) to get the majority of workers to know and understand the inner and outer workings of the new society?

[Marsella]

I'm rather tired so I will mainly copy previous responses to your questions. I apologize for my laziness :P :


Q1: Will the majority of workers need to be educated in revolutionary theory before the revolution happens?

The material conditions more than any amount of theory open the eyes of the contending working class.

Its like, one day, walking out of the factory you see your boss driving away in a Porsche! And your catching the train home!

People don't necessarily need Marxist theory to understand that they are being fucked over!

But it certainly helps!

If anything, the amount of theory is enough to turn anyone's mind into mush.

That's not to mention that most people treat Marx's, Lenin's, Mao's theory uncritically.

I would think that a mere basic understanding of the Communist Manifesto would be more than enough.


Q2: Is it possible to get the majority of workers to know and understand the inner and outer workings of the new society?

Few revolutionary movements have but mere 'principles' in which they set out to achieve.

No movement has it planned right down the every pinpoint.

Its unreasonable to suggest that a proletarian movement should.

Look for example at the Utopian Socialists. Owen and Co had their societies planned down to the dot. It didn't make them any more revolutionary.

The point is, what comes will come as a natural response. Forcing certain dogmas will get us no-where.

And of course, the main revolutionary goal is the absence of private property.

It doesn't need to get any more complex than that

[gilhyle]

Originally posted by Revolutionary [email protected] 02, 2007 05:21 pm

Question #1:
Will the majority of workers need to be educated in revolutionary theory before the revolution happens?


No

[Revolutionary Souljah]

I can understand some of the major points.

But hear me out on this.


What concepts and ideas are going to become practice and be used commonly after the revolution?

Things like consensus, direct democracy, etc etc....

workers need to understand concepts like this and others, but theyre not too easy to see in material reality

and for the solution...

...I think People's Schools are going to be necessary before the revolution. Imagine going to school everyday and learning from critical/popular teaching methods.

It just seems necessary to gain a collective class consciousness, which I hope most would agree is needed before revolution.

[Ramachandra]

Will the majority of workers need to be educated in revolutionary theory before the revolution happens?
Yes and no :D
I mean you cannot exept all the workers to read "das capital".
But obviously to have the revolution succeeded to gather the workers some kind of a knowledge is essential.That willl help them to cope up with day to day problems related with the revolution.
EX:Why and how the banking system should be nationalised?
Making every worker a professinioal marxist expert before the revolution that's utopian.Most of the people will get interested on theory as the revolutionery process proceeds.

[gilhyle]

Its unrealistic. The way this works is that the vanguards of the class develop knowledge - and schools such as you suggest may exist for some. But what you have done is to pose the question of the understanding of the class as a whole. THis is where the flaw is, not in the idea that some members of the class will prepare. Once you recognise that the class is layered. The question is then reposed as who must learn and what must they learn.

Then I would suggest that your idea of teaching various things comes into focus and I would say that much of this cannot be taught - since everyone needs the practice of revolution to learn it in the first place.

[elinzl]

致ＲＥＤＳＴＡＲ２０００老师
您好，我是一名中国的医学院学生,对您的理论勇气我表示钦佩,我要向您学习,象切格瓦拉一样生 活,

[Marsella]

Originally posted by [email protected] 05, 2007 01:38 pm
致ＲＥＤＳＴＡＲ２０００老师
您好，我是一名中国的医学院学生,对您的理论勇气我表示钦佩,我要向您学习,象切格瓦拉一样生 活,
Well said, I agree.

[BobKKKindle$]

Workers need to have a basic understanding of how the existing socio-economic order, that is, the division of society into classes based on access to productive resources, is irreconcilable with their own interests – this is a precondition for revolution. This understanding arises from material conditions and the political agitation of the vanguard party (otherwise known as the distinction between objective and subjective factors) but does not necessitate a detailed knowledge of Marxist economic theory and analysis of the state.

It must be emphasized that Marxism is based on the historical and international experiences of the proletariat. This is significant; socialists develop their analysis based on an examination of how workers have responded to the challenges faced, when they have been able to deprive the bourgeoisie of state power. Workers do not construct systems of political organization, for example, soviet democracy, in accordance with a body of theoretical knowledge; rather, these innovations emerge as a manifestation of the collective will of the proletariat in accordance with what the revolution demands.

To insist on the need for a detailed knowledge of what socialists perceive as desirable structural characteristics of a hypothetical society is to show an arrogant disregard for the power of the proletariat.

[rouchambeau]

Workers need to have a basic understanding of how the existing socio-economic order, that is, the division of society into classes based on access to productive resources, is irreconcilable with their own interests – this is a precondition for revolution. This understanding arises from material conditions and the political agitation of the vanguard party (otherwise known as the distinction between objective and subjective factors) but does not necessitate a detailed knowledge of Marxist economic theory and analysis of the state.
That's all good, but I would contend that much of the working class already knows this better than anyone else, Marxists included.