As we all know, the greatest contribution of Marxism is the discovery of historical materialism and surplus value theory. If historical materialism mainly reveals the development law of the whole human society, it solves the mystery of human historical development; Then the theory of surplus value mainly studies and discovers the laws of the development of capitalist society, solves the mystery of the development of capitalist society, and has an important impact on the early development of capitalism.
The development of capitalism can be roughly divided into three stages, namely primitive accumulation, free competition and monopoly capitalism. The primary stage of capitalism is the primitive accumulation stage of capital.
The primary stage of capitalism is the process of primitive accumulation. Marx revealed that capital accumulation is the essence of capitalization of surplus value, and analyzed the inevitability of capital accumulation and the factors that determine the amount of capital accumulation. Marx traced the accumulation of capital back to the primitive accumulation of capital, and revealed the historical trend of capitalist accumulation in his investigation of primitive accumulation of capital, that is, the contradictory movement of productive forces and relations of production in capitalist society. Marx pointed out: capital accumulation has improved the production level, and capitalist production has been socialized; The means of production are increasingly concentrated and the scale of production is constantly expanding; Socialization of labor, each product has become the result of the joint work of many people; The production process is socialized, the social division of labor is becoming more and more detailed, and various production activities are closely linked; The market scale is expanding day by day, the international market is formed, and the production in capitalist countries has become a worldwide production. Socialization of production requires that the means of production be possessed by the society, and that the society should implement unified planning and management of production and distribute products according to the interests of workers in the whole society.
With the progress of society, there will be new changes in all aspects, and contemporary capitalism is no exception. No matter from productivity, production relations, superstructure or class structure, great changes have taken place. For example, as far as the current social reality is concerned, contemporary capitalism has changed to a great extent compared with the times of Marx and Lenin. Chinese scholars have interpreted and analyzed this situation from different angles.
From the perspective of productivity, scholars generally believe that capitalism has made great progress in productivity in this modern era with rapid development of science and technology and changing industrial structure, mainly manifested in the rapid growth of labor productivity and social wealth, the trend of informationization, service industry and high technology of industrial structure gradually emerged, mental labor increased, manual labor decreased accordingly, and its labor tools were fully expanded with the development of science and technology.
From the perspective of production relations, contemporary capitalism has also undergone corresponding adjustments and changes, showing new characteristics in many aspects. For example, the ownership relationship of capital socialization is strengthening, and the distribution relationship of social welfare policy is emerging. Scholars generally describe it as: government intervention in microeconomics and macroeconomics; Implement the employee stock ownership plan; Implement welfare policies; Adjust income redistribution with tax. In addition, in the discussion of the new changes in production relations, the discussion of national and international monopoly capitalism, globalization and the capitalist world system is also involved.
Judging from the superstructure, most researchers believe that capitalism has changed significantly in the following four aspects. (1) The political system and the legal system have been effectively combined; (2) The functions of the state in managing the economy and society have been strengthened, and the regulatory role of the state has become more and more prominent; (3) the democratic form of the bourgeoisie has been further expanded; (4) The ideological differences between the left and the right are gradually weakening. Although the status of mainstream ideology has not changed, the diversified value orientation is more distinct. From our point of view, we believe that the core is that the form of capitalist political rule has become more perfect and refined, and this change is inseparable from the reproduction conditions created by ourselves.
Here, the fundamental purpose of studying the new development and changes of contemporary capitalism is to predict a development trend of contemporary capitalism in history. In view of this, the academic circles have had active discussions and formed some representative views, among which the following three views are the most representative. One view is that capitalism itself still has strong social adaptability and development potential. The second view holds that the new changes of contemporary capitalism have not eliminated its basic contradictions, and it is a historical necessity for socialism to replace capitalism. The third view is described like this. Contemporary capitalism should see its two sides. On the one hand, we should see the role of these new changes in alleviating contradictions, maintaining stability and promoting the continued development of productive forces in capitalist society. On the other hand, we should also see the limitations of this role, and even its role in brewing and intensifying capitalist contradictions. We should not only see the role of these new changes in delaying the collapse of capitalism and prolonging its life, but also see that it has not and cannot change the historical fate that capitalism has been replaced by socialism after a long development process.
Personally, I still agree with the third view. First of all, capitalism still has great development space and great vitality, but this is just in line with the scientific judgment of Marxism on the law of social development, so it is an inevitable trend of history that capitalism will eventually be replaced by socialism.
The Development of Capitalism Part II: On the Driving Force of Capitalism in Market Economy Abstract: The author follows Max&; Bull; Weber made a further study on the viewpoint expounded in Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism, and found that it was different from Marx &; Bull; Weber's different viewpoints, while digging deep into historical phenomena, explain why Marx &; Bull; Some historical facts ignored by Weber, with the help of Mas&; Bull; The works of Sambat, Weber's contemporary friend, put forward a new interpretation of the capitalist spirit of Protestant ethics.
Keywords: capitalist population pressure, Eastern and Western civilizations
I. Introduction
German sociologist Max&; Bull; Weber's Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism is undoubtedly a very important sociological work. The first draft of the book was published twice in the most influential publication of that era, Social Science and Social Political Literature, at 1940 and 1950, which expressed the national pride of a citizen of the German Empire who grew rapidly after the reunification of the country and became a first-class power after Britain, France and the United States. This feeling is deeply imprinted on the important role of Protestant ethics he admired in the formation of capitalist spirit. Therefore, Protestant ethics and capitalist spirit are regarded as Max & amp； Bull; Weber made a theoretical summary of the mature capitalist spirit, order, development and system at the beginning of the twentieth century, and provided a new principle explanation. However, at the beginning of the publication of this article, it caused a strong debate, including Max &；; Bull; Weber * * * is Werner &; Bull; Sambat holds a different view. Use Max &；; Bull; Weber has a deep influence in academic circles, and this book is similar to Max&; Bull; The religious views involved in Weber's other works have new significance for us to study the overall social values today. For example, we want to determine whether Protestant ethics, as a religious force, played any role in the formation of the essence of capitalism and its subsequent global expansion, why the East and the West developed along different paths after 1500 years, and whether Asian civilization could independently develop capitalism. Besides, I'm studying Max & amp； Bull; At that time, I also had some different views on Weber's Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism, and I was willing to discuss with the Fang family and do further research.
Second, Max &；; Bull; Weber praised "Protestant ethics and capitalist spirit"
Max & bull Weber clearly stated his position at the beginning of the book Introduction to the Author. "Why is there a (we think; Its development is a cultural phenomenon with world significance and value. From this standpoint, the author thinks that Max&; Bull; From the beginning, Weber denied that the different cultural phenomena and living conditions in other countries and regions were at the same level as the western civilization with world significance and universal value that he admired. It seems that only the western society has provided a template for the people of the world to learn, others only need to learn, and it is reasonable not to even accept the genocide of such western civilization and values! Because in the whole book, we only see Max &；; Bull; Weber immigrated to Europe, and the Protestants he admired developed the American continent, small enough to plunder and slaughter the aborigines. There is no denying that Max & amp； Bull; Weber praised the material and scientific basis of Protestant ethics and capitalist spirit. As described by the author of The Biography of Weber, Max&; Bull; Weber has reason to be proud. 1904 in midsummer, he saw "skyscrapers towering into the sky and the Statue of Liberty standing on the coast" in new york. So Max &；; Bull; Weber was once again shocked by "the great creative power of capitalist spirit". Because Max &；; Bull; Weber lived in the unified German Empire, and has abandoned the feud between Prussian vassals, the subjugation of many small countries and big countries, and become a first-class world power after Britain, France and the United States, so this national pride is understandable. However, when writing "Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism" with such a mentality, we will find many things that are quite different from the multicultural structure in today's world, so the author is willing to make some new interpretations of the book, please correct me.
Third, the center explains "Protestant ethics and capitalist spirit"
The capitalist spirit under the influence of Protestant ethics summarized by Max & bull Weber in Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism mainly includes the following points: 1, "Professional responsibility is an important feature of social ethics of capitalist culture; Now, in a sense, it is also the fundamental foundation of capitalist culture. " 2. "As long as it is done legally, making money is the result and performance of professional virtue and ability". Here we can compare Confucius' teaching disciples that "a gentleman loves money, takes it wisely and uses it properly"; 3. On page 19-22, the book quotes Benjamin &; Bull; Franklin finally asserted that the spirit of capitalism undoubtedly appeared before the emergence of the capitalist order. And Benjamin &; Bull; Franklin summed up the spirit of Americans: prohibition of alcohol, silence, order, firmness, reference, diligence, sincerity, justice, temperance, cleanliness, tranquility, chastity and humility. Death has not repented of the killing of aborigines, but other thinkers have interpreted the so-called "American spirit" from a completely different angle: "In the United States, the Puritan spirit has degenerated into a stubborn town spirit, focusing only on the so-called drawings. Secular Hobbesian concern nourishes the main motive of modernity-greed for infinite experience; Even "the impulse to pursue endowment has replaced abstinence and asceticism, and the hedonistic lifestyle has drowned out the call of duty." "
So, can we make such assumptions and inferences? First, does Protestant ethics necessarily promote the spirit of capitalism? Or is it impossible for countries and regions that have not been invaded by Protestants to have capitalism and capitalist spirit? Second, Protestant ethics or the spirit of capitalism must be superior to the spirit of other nationalities or religions, so as to completely eradicate or even physically eliminate the so-called "heretics" who inherit other human cultural heritage. Is it under the guidance of the Bible that all the human beings in the world bow down? Third, if Max &；; Bull; Webber has lived long enough. How would he feel when he saw that the countries and regions nurtured by the capitalist spirit he admired experienced the Great Depression in the late 1920s and 1930s, the subsequent rise of Hitler and the Second World War?
A careful analysis of the above problems is first of all a sufficient condition, that is, Protestant ethics must give birth to the spirit of capitalism, or Marx &; Bull; Weber himself affirmed the spirit of capitalism, in fact, he has asserted in "Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism" that "the spirit of capitalism undoubtedly appeared before the order of capital attention appeared". We also know that before the Reformation, the powerful countries in Ezhou, such as the Netherlands, Spain and the Mediterranean coast, had frequent trade exchanges, which fully demonstrated the activity ability of the capitalist spirit that was about to rule the world economy. There were no so-called Protestants at that time! Not to mention Protestant ethics!
The second proposition is a necessary condition. Even in countries and regions without Protestant ethics, there can be no "great creativity of capitalist spirit", that is, there will be no Max &；; Bull; Mr. Weber marveled that "skyscrapers soar into the sky and the Statue of Liberty stands on the coast". What about Japan, an East Asian country that almost unified Germany and Bismarck and competed with western powers through the Meiji Restoration? Japan naturally belongs to the Confucian cultural circle, and Zu Er, an island country, can develop the capitalist spirit and system without the invasion of Protestant ethics. Max& what's up? Bull; How does Mr. Webber explain it? At least we can't be explained in Protestant ethics and capitalist spirit. As for Marx &; Bull; Needless to say, Mr. Weber did not see the economic entities such as the Asian Four Little Dragons take off later. From this, we can see that the capitalist spirit and order can still exist without the invasion of Protestant ethics. If we study the plantation economy developed by overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia more carefully, it seems that it can be compared with the southern economic model during the American Civil War.
As for the third proposition, it was a disastrous case later. Capitalist scholars have complementary explanations, at least for some theorists who firmly believe in laissez-faire competition in the capitalist market. What's more, did Hitler's theory of calling superiority and national supremacy come from Max &；; Bull; It is difficult for us to implement Mr. Weber's influence. Let's put it aside for a while. At least learn from your conscience, Max&; Bull; Weber would not agree with Hitler's theoretical preparation for Jews to plan a new holocaust; As we know, many Protestants' theories come from the religious version of the Bible that they oppose, and the Bible is the history of the struggle of the Jewish nation written by ancient Israelis in Hebrew. Of course, in the name of God's justice, a city-state will often be destroyed, and some so-called pagan descriptions will also be destroyed by one finger. They don't quote sermons when they preach in church.
Fourth, reflection on the lack of primary capitalism in China.
When studying the comparison between China's history of science and technology and Europe, Englishman Joseph Needham (1900- 1995) was deeply attracted by the rich and splendid farming civilization in the Yellow River and Yangtze River basins with a long history, and was inexplicably surprised at why the Asian mode of production represented by China's farming civilization did not produce the modern capitalist mode of production, so he put forward the famous "Joseph Needham Mystery". Voltaire, a Frenchman, studied the historical process and technological evolution of various countries and had the same question. Mark &, a famous contemporary American sinologist; Bull; Mark Elvin explained the "high-level trap" in his monograph China's past model: a social and economic explanation. Later, many scholars gave multiple interpretations from the perspective that China's imperial examination selection system was bound by human feelings in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Limited to space, I won't discuss it here.
To sum up, if Max &；; Bull; Weber just wanted to explain that Protestant ethics had an important influence on the development of capitalism &; Mdash only puts forward this idea as a tentative hypothesis, and regards the spirit of capitalism and its subsequent institutional laws as a very complicated historical process in Europe for a long time. Protestant ethics has played an important role, so it is debatable to exaggerate this role. Therefore, can we try to make the following statement: the existence and development process of any social phenomenon is the unity of reality and consciousness. The formation and evolution of the Puritans' views on religion, contract and law are no exception, and the capitalist spirit evolved from then on can only help us better understand the formation and change of their corresponding ideas based on the real situation of the Puritans at that time. Similarly, many excellent qualities of capitalist spirit are also reflected in the traditions of all ethnic groups. It happened that the living space and rights demands of a certain class in Europe could not be satisfied in their own region after the religious reform. With the increasing population pressure and the constant desire to pursue wealth, they sailed across the ocean with sailboats. In this process of conquering the world and embodying the so-called "will of the Lord", Marx & Boolean; Fortunately, Weber didn't see the Great Depression and the rise of Hitler. hellip& amphellip
References:
1. [Germany] Max &；; Bull; Weber, Peng Qiang and Huang Xiao are quiet. Protestant Ethics and Capitalist Spirit [M] An: Shaanxi Normal University Press, 2002.
2.[ America] Stavri Anoos, Wu, Liang translated: "A General History of the World: 1500 Years Later" [M] Shanghai: Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences Press, 1992.
3. Ji: Biography of Weber [M] Shijiazhuang: Hebei People's Publishing House, 1998.
Abstract: Capitalism, as an economic and social system, has gone through five centuries since it came into being in the 6th century. Especially after World War II, although some countries in the world broke away from the capitalist world system, the developed capitalist countries, as the central part of the capitalist world, not only survived, but also achieved unprecedented development, showing a high level of scientific, technological, economic and social development, and even occupying a leading position in global development. However, due to the inherent contradiction and essence of capitalism, capitalism is an unreasonable social system after all. While affirming its positive historical role, we should also recognize the objective reality that its internal contradictions and disadvantages always exist.
Keywords: capitalism; Contradictions; Socialism; production relations
First, a deep understanding of "two necessities"
Capitalism is a constantly developing and changing social form, so the understanding of capitalism should be deepened. Marx and Engels pointed out that capitalism is a system of wage labor exploitation based on private ownership, and one exploitation system replaces another. The basic contradiction in capitalist society is the contradiction between socialization of production and capitalist private possession of means of production, which has led to the increasingly serious capitalist economic crisis.
The contradiction between the socialization of production and the capitalist private possession of the means of production makes the trend of unlimited expansion of capitalist production and the increasing poverty of working people grow at the same time. Engels pointed out in "On Anti-social Forest": "The improvement of machines will cause the surplus of human labor. If the adoption and increase of machines means that millions of manual workers are squeezed out by a few machine workers, then the improvement of machines means that more and more machine workers themselves are squeezed out. In the final analysis, it is to create a group of disposable hired workers who exceed the average capital needs in business, a real industrial reserve army. " [1] With the development of capital accumulation, the scale of private ownership is getting bigger and bigger, the degree of socialization is getting higher and higher, and their contradictions will deepen. This shows that capitalist relations of production have seriously hindered the development of productive forces and will inevitably be replaced by new relations of production. Marx clearly pointed out in Das Kapital: "The concentration of the means of production and the socialization of labor have reached the point where they are incompatible with their capitalist shells. This shell is about to explode. The death knell of capitalism is about to ring. Those who are deprived will be deprived. " [2] Deng Xiaoping also pointed out in his southern talk: "The essence of socialism is to liberate and develop productive forces, eliminate exploitation and polarization, and finally achieve * * * prosperity." [3] In a long historical period, socialism will be in a state of quantitative accumulation or partial qualitative change, which shows that the demise of capitalism related to it is also an evolutionary process. Therefore, from the perspective of social indicators such as the development level of productive forces, socialism can not be compared with today's capitalist countries to a large extent, and it is a long-term process for socialism to replace capitalism.
Second, the essential feature of capitalism-the exploitation system based on private ownership
Marx pointed out that workers and means of production are always factors of production, regardless of the social production form. In capitalist society, the combination of the two is that a few capitalists who have the material conditions to organize large-scale production without relying on their own labor to meet the production, find those proletarians who have lost all the means of production and nothing from the market in the form of equivalent exchange, and buy their labor as a commodity and put it into production. Therefore, capitalism is an employment system based on the capitalist's private possession of the means of production and the basis of capitalist exploitation.
Under the system of wage labor based on private ownership, the relationship between capital and wage labor is a relationship of exploitation and exploitation, but in real life, it is covered by the equivalent exchange relationship between capital and wage labor. The equivalent exchange between capitalists and workers is just a form, and the content and result covered by this form are unequal exchanges. Workers do not belong to one capitalist, but to the whole capitalist class. Marx hit the nail on the head and pointed out: "Roman slaves were bound by chains, while hired workers were bound by invisible threads to their masters." [4]
Third, correctly understand the progressive role of capitalism in history.
Although capitalism has its inherent disadvantages, it has a progressive role in historical development. In 1844' s Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts, Marx particularly emphasized that the victory of industrial capitalists over feudal landlords and the victory of industry over agriculture was a historical progress. The transition from feudal land ownership to capitalist ownership is an irresistible and inevitable historical process, and any action to stop the development of capitalism is futile.
Capitalism plays an irreplaceable role in the civilization and progress of human society. First, the capitalist mode of production has adapted to the nature of productive forces and promoted their development. "In the past century, people expected such productivity in social labor." [5] Second, the bourgeoisie destroyed all feudal patriarchal relations and idyllic relations, ruthlessly cut off all kinds of feudal fetters that bound people and natural elders, eliminated all fixed ancient relations and traditional ideas and propositions corresponding to them, and established a new humanistic concept and science with "freedom, equality and fraternity" as the core. Third, the bourgeoisie has created and opened up the international market, forcing the production and consumption of all countries to go global. Marx and Engels profoundly exposed, criticized and condemned the primitive accumulation of capitalism and the war of aggression to open up the world commodity sales market and obtain the raw material base. But at the same time, dialectically, this kind of aggression objectively brought western progressive civilization to the invaded country, although it was extremely painful and humiliating to the invaded country and people. Fourth, the bourgeoisie is increasingly destroying the means of production. The dispersion of property and population leads to economic concentration, which in turn leads to political concentration. It destroyed the barriers of feudal separatism, and combined independent regions with almost only alliances, different interests, different laws, different governments and different tariffs into a nation with unified government, unified laws, unified national class interests and unified tariffs, thus realizing the unity of the nation and the country.
Fourth, socialism should reasonably inherit and develop the achievements of capitalist civilization.
Judging from the logical process of historical development, human society is a development process from low to high. Various social forms have played their historical roles in accordance with the objective requirements of social development and created civilized achievements conducive to social progress. These achievements are bound to be inherited and used for reference by the next social form and become the basic factors of social progress and development. After the socialist revolution eliminated capitalist private ownership and wage labor system, we should adopt various ways to inherit and utilize the materialized productive forces left over from capitalist society, and fully absorb and learn from the modern management experience and advanced science and technology of capitalist production and operation. This reflects the general law of production development and economic prosperity, is the common wealth of all mankind, and cannot be completely eliminated. Among them, Bacon, a bourgeois thinker, put forward the slogan "knowledge is power". The bourgeoisie opposed feudal superstition with science, which caused the renewal of human scientific concept for the first time, and human beings had a leap-forward understanding of the objective world. The bourgeois revolution in science also caused the technological revolution. In addition, capitalism established a form of democracy and state in the struggle against feudalism. Although this form of democratic country has obvious class nature and serves the bourgeoisie, it is indeed much better than the feudal system. After the proletariat gains political power, it should retain the mature form of bourgeois political rule.
Although the capitalist countries at that time, especially the western developed countries, have obviously accelerated the development of productive forces in the last hundred years. It can be seen that there is still a lot of room for development within the capitalist society of productive forces, and the role of capitalism in promoting productive forces has not been completely exhausted, so we think that the view that capitalism will soon perish is not in line with the law of social development. However, as Marx and Engels thought, capitalism is a historical and temporary social form. It will inevitably be replaced by a more advanced social form. Therefore, with the development of productive forces, the relations of production will change too fast and too slowly, just as quantitative change leads to qualitative change, and this change will eventually reach its limit. The old social form will perish, and a new social form will emerge. Capitalism is constantly adjusting the relations of production with the development of productive forces, that is, contemporary capitalism is gradually moving towards the advanced stage of social formation and being replaced by a more advanced and reasonable socialist system.
References:
[1] Marx and Engels. Selected works of Marx and Engels. The volume is 3[ meters]. Beijing: People's Publishing House, 1995: 748.
[2] Marx and Engels. Selected works of Marx and Engels. Volume 2 [M]. Beijing: People's Publishing House, 1995: 269.
[3] Deng Xiaoping. Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping. The volume is 3[ meters]. Beijing: People's Publishing House, 1993: 382.
[4] Marx and Engels. Selected works of Marx and Engels. Volume 2 [M]. Beijing: People's Publishing House, 1995: 232.
[5] Marx and Engels. Selected works of Marx and Engels. Volume 1 [M]. Beijing: People's Publishing House, 1995: 277.
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