Capitalism and Communism - Univerzita Karlova



CAPITALISM VS. COMMUNISM: SOCIAL DEMOCRACY

4 credits

Miloš Brunclík

milosbrunclik@centrum.cz

Term:

both: Spring,Fall 2011

Number of hours:

3 hours per week + discussion

Prerequisites:

no special prerequisites, the course is taught in English

Schedule:

Thursdays 9:00 – 12:20

Room:

Faculty of Education, M.D. Rettigové street, room: small Hall

Requirements:

Exam

Description:

The course will examine the dichotomy between the two predominant forms of state organization and markets, i.e., capitalism and communism throughout the 20th century. Although the concepts have their economic facets, the primary perspective pursued in the course is that of political science. The course integrates two strands of political science: political theory (political philosophy), and comparative (empirical) politics. In the course we will discuss different meanings and interpretations of the concepts, which are used in different contexts across time and space. Capitalism and communism have contrasting understanding of democracy, which is another important issue analyzed in the course. The theoretical background is completed with many empirical examples.

The course will focus on the Soviet ideological division of the world into the communist east and capitalist west, and its distorted teaching of economic development applied to the former Warsaw Bloc countries (notably Czechoslovakia). The political movement known as social democracy (that originated in 19th socialist movement) sought compromise between the two contrasting ideologies through state regulation and social reforms aimed at adjusting inadequacies of the capitalist regime. Over the course of the semester the students will become familiar with the theories and their diverse historical applications in various countries.

Goal:

The aim of the course is to present various approaches to the concepts of capitalism, communism and social democracy, and show that the concepts continue to be important and influential today, notably in relation to the understanding of democracy. Most political struggles in contemporary democratic and even non-democratic states of today embodied by left-wing and right-wing parties have roots in the fundamentally different perspectives on the ideal form of organization of society, economy and state. Students will be able to understand these concepts and their various meanings, and analyze and interpret them in various contexts.

Contents:

1. Introductory lecture

o Organizational matters, requirements, readings etc.

o Ideas and ideology

o Democracy and its meaning

o Democracy: past and present

2. Non-democratic regimes

o Authoritarian regimes

o Totalitarian regimes

o Readings: Brooker 2000: introduction and chapter 1.

o Movie: “Kladivo na čarodějnice” 1969 (Witchhammer)

3. Capitalism : origins and developments

o Capitalism as an economic and political system

o Theory of Karl Marx and Max Weber

o Martin Berger: theory of capitalism

o Readings 1: Newman, de Zoysa. 2001: chapter 1.

4. Capitalism as a liberal ideology

o Traditions of liberal thought

o Free-market economy

o Readings 1: Mises 2000: preface, introduction, chapter 1 and 2.

5. Socialism: history of socialist movement

o Socialist/communist ideas in the history of political thought

o Socialist movement and its strands

o Readings: Berman 2000

o Movie: “král šumavy” 1959 (smugglers of death)

6. From socialism to communism

o Split of socialist movement

o Communist ideology

o Readings 1: Marx 1848 (especially pages 14-34 and 41-54)

o Readings 2: Lenin 1920

o Mid-term exam

7. Communism in practice

o Communist system in the Soviet Union

o Communist system in the Czechoslovakia

o Readings: Agnew 2004: chapter 12 and 13

o Movie: “Ucho” 1970 (The Ear)

8. Reformist communism and Eurocommunism

o The 1953 revolt in the German Democratic Republic and the Prague Spring 1968 in Czechoslovakia

o Can communism be reformed?

o Eurocommunism in Western Europe

o Criticism of communism

o Readings 1: Agnew 2004: chapter 13 and 14

o Readings 2: Azcárate: 1978

9. MOVIE: “PELÍŠKY” 1999 (COSY DENS)

10. Social democracy in theory and practice

o Social democracy and socialism

o Socialist parties in Europe

o Readings: Newman, de Zoysa. 2001: chapter 2.

11. Third way: beyond left and right?

o What does political left and right mean?

o Theories of third way

o Criticism of the third way

o Readings: Newman, de Zoysa. 2001: chapter 5 and 6.

12. Socialism and communism in Europe after 1989

o End of history

o Why communist ideas survive?

o Communist and socialist parties in Europe

o Readings 1: Fukuyma 1989.

o Readings 2: Kopeček 2005: p. 11-26; 109-117.

13. MOVIE: “GOOD BYE, LENIN” (2003)

14. Final exam + students’ projects presentation

Grading:

Attendance, class preparation and participation are mandatory 20%

Midterm test based on a selected reading 30%

Integrative project based on independent research 30%

Final exam 20%

Readings collected in class reader:

o Agnew, Hugh. 2004. The Czechs and the Lands of the Bohemian Crown. Stanford: Hoover Press.

o Azcárate, Manuel.1978. What is Eurocommunism?

o Berman, Sheri. 2000. Understanding Social Democracy.

o Brooker, Paul. 2000. Non-Democratic Regimes: Theory, Government and Politics. Houndmills: Macmillan.

o Fukuyma, Francis. 1989. The End of History? National Interest.

o Giddens, Anthony. 2005. Third Way. The renewal of social democracy. Cambridge: Polity.

o Kopeček, Lubomír. “Comparison of Left Parties in Central Europe. Some Causes of Different Successfulness.”pp. 109-117. In Kopeček, Lubomír (ed.). 2005. Trajectories of the left: social democratic and (ex)communist parties in contemporary Europe. Brno: CDK.

o Lenin ,V.I. 1920. Conditions of admission to the Communist international

o Marx, Karl. 1848. Communist Manifesto.

o Mises, Ludwig. 2000. Liberalism in The Classical Tradition. Irvington: The Mises Institute.

o Newman, Otto and Richard de Zoysa. 2001. The Promise of the Third Way. Globalization and Social Justice. Houndmills, Basingtoke, Hampshire: Palgrave.

Further readings:

o Dahl, Robert A. 2000. On democracy. New Haven & London: Yale University Press.

o Gamble, Andrew. 1988. The Free Economy and Strong State. The Politics of Thatcherism. Houndmills, London: Macmillan

o Iversen, Torben. 2006. Democracy and Capitalism. Goodin, Robert. E. (ed.). The Oxford Handbook of Political Science. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

o Schumpeter, Joseph A. 1962. Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers. 3rd edition.

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