2.2 | Marxism and its descendants

II | WORLDVIEWS

The term “Marxism” has become a polarizing generalization in much of our culture. We hear Marxism frequently discussed but rarely understood. Marxism is a vast subject, without a lot of agreement or unity around its theory and an almost infinite number of interpretations about what it is or isn’t. Karl Marx had theories about economics, society and politics that are mostly summed up in his famous (or infamous) work The Communist Manifesto. Marxism as a worldview has led to a multitude of subsequent worldviews and theories that have made their mark on the world.

Marxism has many forms, but the fundamentals are:

• The world is divided into two groups, the oppressor ruling class (bourgeoisie) and the oppressed lower class (proletariat). The ruling class has always oppressed the lower class; thus social revolution is needed to create a classless, homogenous society.

• The best system of government is one in which wealth is distributed equally, there is no private property, and every citizen gives selflessly to the collective.

• The government is the highest authority. The state is the provider, sustainer, and protector of every citizen. The abolition of religion is a necessary outcome of Marxism. Karl Marx himself stated, “The first requisite of the happiness of the people is the abolition of religion” (“A Criticism of the Hegelian Philosophy of Right,” 1844).

I want to highlight that last point and compare it to the founding document of the United States – the Declaration of Independence. The Introduction and Preamble say this:

"When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.—That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,—That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”

// Introduction and Preamble of the United States Declaration of Independence.

The founding principles of the United States are laid on a foundation of rights granted to us as human beings by God. The founding fathers asserted that the “Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God” were the highest laws available to us. They go on to assert truths that are self-evident—that is, objective truths created by God himself—and that the highest and best aim of government is to protect the rights given to us by God.

Karl Marx believed that rights and truths are created by the state. The truths that are evident in society are the ones created by the state itself. There is no appeal to authority beyond the government. Scholars assert that Marxism and Christianity are incompatible. In many ways Marxism also seems to be incongruous with the founding principles of the United States. Marx did not agree with the belief in natural law or “Nature’s God.” There seems to be a vast chasm between the founding fathers of the United States and Marx. This shows just how much our worldviews can shape our thinking and therefore the world we live in.

Karl Marx died in squalor in 1883 with very little influence. But his Communist Manifesto has influenced almost every part of the world and has informed the government of nations. The former Soviet Union may be the largest example of a Marxist state. There are also places like Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland and even China that are held up as proof that elements of Marxism can make society function well. However, the leadership of Lenin, Stalin, Pol Pot, Mao Zedong and other regimes attest to the problems in the application of Marxism. Between the Holodomor, the Great Leap Forward, and Cambodian genocide, over 100 million people are estimated to have been killed in these leaders’ efforts to implement Marxism in some form or fashion. Marx’s ideas are controversial, but they remain influential throughout the world. Almost 150 years after his death, Marx is still in the cultural lexicon.

Critical Theory

One of the relatively modern descendants of Marxism is a worldview called Critical Theory. Critical Theory was established in the 1920s by a group of scholars at the Institute for Social Research in Frankfurt, Germany (known as the Frankfurt School). Max Horkheimer, Theodor W. Adorno, Herbert Marcuse, Walter Benjamin and Erich Fromm are some of the more well-known intellectuals who helped craft Critical Theory.

What is Critical Theory (CT)? Horkheimer described it as something that seeks to “liberate human beings from the circumstances that enslave them” (Horkheimer 1982, 244). In 1937, when describing CT in his essay “Traditional and Critical Theory,” he asserted that it was meant to critique and change society comprehensively. The goal of Critical Theory was not to explain or understand society as other theories had in the past. The Frankfurt School attempted to establish what they considered to be a practical and actionable form of Marxism. They wanted to establish not just a school of thought but a school of life, one that was rooted in criticizing and changing the “norms” of society. These intellectual descendants of Karl Marx created a self-described radical form of Marxism that would change society as we know it.

Critical Theory has become a predominant worldview in academia. Students are taught from middle school all the way to college to analyze the world through the lens of CT, to see the world through a lens of critique to identify and overthrow systems of oppression. Academics will state that Critical Theory is merely an educational tool that helps students see the world from a different perspective, something designed solely for discussion and critique. The creators of Critical Theory intended for it to become much more than exclusively a teaching tool. It is meant – by its creators – to change and restructure whatever it is applied to.