The Contemporary Marxist Revolution

Karl Marx has been one of the most influential thinkers in social sciences. His writings have been reinterpreted and criticized many times and have periodically lost and gained popularity. Nowadays, because of the increase in inequality, Marx's theories are regaining popularity. However, as relevant as some of the theories still are, the social context has changed: the working class, which is now called the "middle class", has become comfortable within the capitalist system. It is now able to enjoy benefits such as lower hours of work, higher wages, security within their work environment and the membership of unions which are protecting their interests as workers. Besides, with the development of the communication tools and the Media, the ideology superstructure is even more powerful and ingrained in the public's mind. Even though the working class has become more educated and aware about its social circumstance, it is lacking the extreme conditions that would trigger a revolution. However, these extreme conditions could arise if the current trends that define our modern world continually increase. In the following essay, I will try to demonstrate the possibility of a future social and political revolution within the most advanced capitalist countries, which would cease capitalism globally, notably through culture and as a reaction to the collapse of the economy and further destruction of the environment.

It is unfortunately necessary to summarize Marx's theory of revolution as it has, many times, been deformed and misinterpreted (maybe because of its complexity, maybe because of its inconvenience?). Marx did not expect a sudden realisation from the proletariat of the different contradiction of the capitalist system. First, Marx predicted periodic economic crises which would be more frequent, severe and less likely to correct themselves in the most mature capitalist society (Ball, 2009: p.127). These crises have clearly happened recently in the most advanced countries, in particular with the 2011 bailout in the U.S. and in Canada and now with the crisis in the European Union. Indeed, the most advanced countries seem more fragile by the fact that their stability exclusively depends on the welfare of their economy. The most advanced countries are then forced to cover the expense of the failure of their system with social wealth which contributes in the increase of federal debts (Truscello, 2011). These short term solutions, which worsen the situation in the long term, indicate a potential future collapse of economy in at least one of the predominant countries which subscribe to such practices. Due to globalisation, such a collapse would eventually lead into a global financial collapse. Greece has been the first country to experience such circumstances so far and the social repercussions of the crisis are such that the country still has not been able to replace its former government.

The second step, according to Marx's theory of revolution, consists in the "Immiseration of the Proletariat". Unemployment, being the major consequence of a financial crisis, is currently also increased by the mechanization of our means of production (New Future Media, 2012) and the delocalization of the means of production (due to globalization). However, I would like to highlight two benefits of unemployment. Firstly, it forces people to find alternatives to the capitalist way of life. Indeed, during the 2009 crisis in France, new trends such as the exchange of goods and services, and the share of facilities and accommodation emerged. Furthermore, a study showed that during the crisis, French people became more solidary (Le Parisien, 2009). These different trends, however, do not help the economy and, as they become more popular, the economy will be less necessary. As suggested by Roger Sue, people's internalization of values (namely of the individual, freedom and equality) brought social changes including the appearance of many associations which is justified by the fact that they offer an "alternative to the public service and the market" (2001, p.87). People would eventually learn to support each other and to work together to provide what the system has failed to give them. The Western culture, which is the most influencing in the world, would then slowly change into a culture closer to nature and closer to others, in other words more human. Beside the reaction to the crisis, we can already observe influential parts of our culture manifesting to start this change: artists (such as Banksy in the UK), celebrities (such as George Clooney), subcultures (such as the hipster trend) and popular movies (such as Avatar) are raising the awareness of the mass about these human values. The second benefit of a crisis brings us to the next step in Marx's Theory of Revolution: the "Rise of Revolutionary Class Consciousness". Indeed, the consequences of a crisis forces people to "reflect critically on the causes of their misery" (Ball, 2009: p.128). I believe that we are slowly experiencing this phase: people are being critical of the system. They are starting to question its fundamental values and are finally realize the capitalism's contradictions. From this realization, Marx predicted the emergence of strikes, boycotts, protests, etc. (which we are experiencing at the moment, e.g. the Occupy Wall Street movement) into a unified force and more militant movement (Ball, 2009: p.128). Marx then suggested three possibilities for the "Seizure of the State Power": a general strike, a civil war, or a free and fair election. It is plain to see that we are currently still experiencing each of the above steps of Marx's Revolution Theory. Knowing whether they will lead to a general strike, a civil war, an election or a combination of these, is a matter of time. Indeed, the situation is such that a future change in our society seems very likely to happen and because of the current environmental condition due to the capitalist system, a radical change is now necessary.

Undeniably, the environmental crisis could play an important role in a future revolution. The increasing pollution, which has become a broadly diffused topic and which is slowing starting to impact people's lives, is forcing them to realise the perversions of a capitalist way of live. Therefore, people are encouraged to change their behaviours and to be more conscious of their actions. The environmental issues would also raise prices including those of basic needs, like food and energy. Consequently, people would look for alternative markets for these goods. What is important here, is to notice that the owners of these basic needs (essentially the means of production) is the bourgeoisie and that finding alternative markets for their supply would contribute to shifting their power (or at least lessen it). In the past, alternatives to powerful industries (such as the energy and the pharmaceutical industries) have been repressed. For example, some of the notes of Nikola Tesla (who discovered free energy) have been kept secret by the US government (Cheney & Uth, 1999: p.164). Indeed, the bourgeoisie is trying to hold on to its power.

Marx believed that a revolution could only be successful after capitalism has been reached globally (Enns, 2012). This situation is however undesirable because of the environmental impact that it would have. However, if the capitalism system would come to an end in the most advanced capitalist countries, the process of globalization would also terminate because globalisation only finds its purpose within a capitalist economy. And as globalization would end, the developing countries would stop being exploited. As suggested in the Communist Manifesto: "as the exploitation of one individual by another is put an end to, the exploitation of one nation by another will also be put an end to" (Marx & Engels, 1998: p.58). It is useful to notice that most developing countries have much stronger communitarian values. Indeed according to a 1999 study, "collectivist cultures make up about 70 per cent of the world's population" (Goleman, n.d.). The economy in these countries is weaker because the capitalist system by which our economy functions is based on individualistic values and because a communitarian system require less wealth from its participants. The misfortune of developing countries then comes from their exploitation by the richer countries since the colonial era and now through globalization (Cook, 2012).

We have seen important change in the Western culture since the last decades. The awareness of certain persons in our society, in particular of the most educated, has brought certain cultural movements such as second hand shopping, vintage, home vegetable gardens, vegetarianism, etc. to fight against capitalist ideas and power. These cultural movements however, as their popularity increase, have the power to change people's behaviours and directly harm the capitalist corporations that rely on an excessive consumption of the mass. As explained by Wendy Griswold in "Cultures and Societies in a Changing World", culture emerges from people and then has the power to change their society through trends and movements (2004, p.16). For example the hippie movement of the 1960s was a protest against conformity. As people created the hippie culture from this point of view, the culture then impacted their society and brought concrete movements such as the protest against the Vietnam War and the spread of drugs. From this theory, we can imagine that the creation of these new cultural trends will have a concrete impact on society. A revolution would then not come from the government in the form of a political party, but from the people themselves, as an answer to a system that has failed, a peaceful way of finally making they voice heard. Indeed, it doesn’t make sense for the people to protest against the system as they are the principle factor within it. Without the mass and its actions, the system could not operate. The solution then lies in the alteration of our behaviours. We hold the power, being greater in number, to decide where we invest our money, our time, our energy and our life into. By trying to look for a solution within the system we contribute to perpetuate its perversion and allowed the exercise of its power over us.

Karl Marx's theory has not faded with time. On the contrary, his theory of revolution seems to have started its process. According to it, we are now at a time where people need to realize and take control of their power. It is impossible to predict with certainty that such thing will happen. However, as the consequences of crises impoverish the working class and as the environmental situation degrades, it is possible that the working class will concretely try to find solutions to fix its situation (or that it will no longer be able to feed the capitalist system) and that it will change its behaviour due to the environment issue. Furthermore, the cultural changes that we have experienced within the last decades in the most advanced capitalist countries are a reflection of a rise of some awareness within the working class. These cultural changes, if they transform into new values, could carry the hope of a possible social and politic change which would lead to a global change due to the importance and the power of developed countries.

Work Cited

Ball, T., Dagger, R., Christian, W. & Campbell, C. (2010). Political Ideologies and the Democratic Ideal. Toronto: Pearson Canada.

Cheney, M. & Uth, R. (1999). Tesla: Master of Lightning. New York: Barnes & Noble Books.

Cook, G. (2012). Development Dependency Theory. Social Structures. Capilano University, North Vancouver.

Enns, S. (2012). Concepts and Theories of Society: Marx Part 2. [Power Point slides]. Retrieved from http://moodle.capilanou.ca/pluginfile.php/29281/mod_resource/content/1/Marx_Part_2_student_.ppt

Goleman, D. (n.d.). The Rise of Individualism: a Most Western Trait. The Vancouver Sun.

Marx, K. & Engels, F. (1848). Manifesto of the Communist Party. In Hobsbawm (Ed.), The Communist Manifesto: a Modern Edition. London: Verso.

New Future Media (2012). I Lost My Job. Retrieved from http://newfuturemedia.net/

Le Parisien (2009). Les Français Misent d'abord sur la Solidarité Face à la Crise. Retrieved from http://www.leparisien.fr/une/les-francais-misent-d-abord-sur-la-solidarite-face-a-la-crise-13-04-2009-477097.php

Sue, R. (2001). The Rise of Associations and New Forms of Solidarity. The Future of Values (2004). UNESCO.

Truscello, M. (2011). Capitalism Is The Crisis: a Documentary Film. Retrieved from http://www.capitalismisthecrisis.net/watchthefilm.html