State and Revolution, Part 8a
Critique of the Gotha Programme
The main text download, linked below, which is Marx’s Critique of the Gotha Programme, is
given here as a supplementary to the fifth chapter of “The State and
Revolution”. There is one more chapter of Lenin’s book to be sent out in this
series.
In this case, our introduction can largely come from Great
Lenin himself. Writing of the “withering away of the state”, Lenin begins by
making a distinction between the “polemical” and the “positive” parts of Marx’s
text:
“Marx explains this question most thoroughly
in his Critique of the Gotha Programme. The polemical part of this remarkable
work, which contains a criticism of Lassalleanism, has, so to speak,
overshadowed its positive part, namely, the analysis of the connection between
the development of communism and the withering away of the state.”
Lenin takes the “theory of development” as a given, fixed
and firm. We as CU may question this finality, using Ron Press’s essay, “New Tools for Marxists”.
But Lenin writes:
“The whole theory of Marx is the application
of the theory of development - in its most consistent, complete, considered and
pithy form - to modern capitalism. Naturally, Marx was faced with the problem
of applying this theory both to the forthcoming collapse of capitalism and to
the future development of future communism.”
Lenin quotes the following from Marx:
"Between capitalist and communist society lies the period of the
revolutionary transformation of the one into the other. Corresponding to this
is also a political transition period in which the state can be nothing but the
revolutionary dictatorship of the
proletariat."
Referring to the late-19th to early 20th
century period of legal, constitutional democracy in Germany, Lenin says:
“during this period the Social-Democrats
were able to achieve far more than in other countries in the way of
"utilizing legality", and organized a larger proportion of the
workers into a political party than anywhere else in the world.”
But then asks:
“What is this largest proportion of
politically conscious and active wage slaves that has so far been recorded in
capitalist society? One million members of the Social-Democratic Party - out of
15,000,000 wage-workers! Three million organized in trade unions - out of
15,000,000!”
For Lenin at this revolutionary moment the numbers are
crucial. The proportion of workers organised, compared to the whole, is
crucial. So it is with us in South Africa today. Democratisation means
organising. The National Democratic Revolution is a practical job of organising
people into democratic structures.
A further practical job is the management of society, where,
as Lenin says:
“In the Critique of the Gotha Programme,
Marx goes into detail to disprove Lassalle's idea that under socialism the
worker will receive the "undiminished" or "full product of his
labor". Marx shows that from the whole of the social labor of society
there must be deducted a reserve fund, a fund for the expansion of production,
a fund for the replacement of the "wear and tear" of machinery, and
so on. Then, from the means of consumption must be deducted a fund for
administrative expenses, for schools, hospitals, old people's homes, and so on.
Instead of Lassalle's hazy, obscure, general phrase ("the full product of
his labor to the worker"), Marx makes a sober estimate of exactly how
socialist society will have to manage its affairs.”
This is a point for the advocates of nationalisation to ponder.
- The above is to introduce the original reading-text: Critique of the Gotha Programme, Karl Marx, 1875, Part 1 and Part 2.
