Communist Blog Post

Sorry this is belated, I was out yesterday (please be merciful)...

4 Positive Things
1. One big positive thing that Marx has listed is that all children should receive a free education, and the abolition of child labor within factories. I believe that this is an idea that is very ahead of its time, and is something that we practice today.
2. Marx believes that there is an obligation for everyone to work. I agree with this, at least to a certain point. While everyone should remain productive, I do not think that thinkers and scientists should be forced to work in the fields, as this would result in stagnation of society.
3. I also agree with the point that sometimes the capital that is distributed to workers as pay is often used as a means of exploitation. We have learned of factories which open up stores to sell basic goods to its workers, albeit at an exorbitant cost. This results in a cycle in which only the upper class is benefiting, and the lower class is always losing.
4. The centralization of transport and communication under the government also sounds like a good idea to me. While it is not a totally a monopoly today, the government has a heavy hand in both transport and communication present-day. Again, like free public education, I believe that Marx was onto an idea that was ahead of its time.

4 Negative Things
1. I believe that the confiscation of all land of emigrants and rebels is extreme. I assume that by "rebels", Marx refers to all of those who disagree with his methods. This is essentially a way to silence the dissenters. This to me is a negative, as it can be seen in history that often times the dissenters are the ones who are right in the end.
2. A monopoly over production by the government also sounds like a bad idea to me. Although capitalism is not perfect, competition fuels innovation. Without innovation, technology stagnates. Not only that, but it only takes a corrupt government official to totally change the production of an entire industry at his/her whim.
3. An abolition of classes would overall be a bad decision. While sometimes the upper class may take advantage of the lower class, it is important to have something for people to aspire to. When a factory worker wakes up i a capitalist society, he can always aspire to one day be the manager of the factory and make it rich, and this provides motivation. In a communist society, ideally everyone remains in the same class their whole life, so where is the motivation to keep going knowing that nothing can be gained?
4. I also believe that a total societal revolution can be a bad thing. It is easy to get swept up in ideals, but after the bad guys are overthrown, it is too easy to simply put on their shoes. Not only that, but who gets to be the leaders in a society such as this? Ideally, everyone is equal in class, so why does this guy get to lead over that guy? It is these kinds of conflicts which would splinter a revolution after its occurrence in my opinion.

Liberator Heroes

All of the portraits have some reference to war or fighting, either through weapons or through blood. This shows that the leaders are willing to fight for what they believe in, or die trying. Also, all of the portraits include some literary content. This is included to contrast the fighting bit; although the leaders can fight, they are also scholars. This is important to win the hearts of the civilians: no one wants an idiot ruler. In all of the portraits besides the one of Marat portray their respective hero as standing. This is because a man standing seems much more ready and intimidating than a man who is sitting.

The artists portray the heroes in this way in order to build respect for these heroes, and also to inspire future generations. If these heroes just liberated a state from an oppressive government, they must not appear oppressive or unwelcoming to the citizens who they just liberated. Also, these portraits are made to inspire future generations. If a revolution is ever required again, rebels will look to past revolutionaries. This will inspire them. For example, if you want to be an astronaut, and you see an awesome portrait of an astronaut, you will be inspired even further.

Revolutions need heroic figures for a few reasons. For one, people need to be inspired to revolt, and these leaders provide a face for the ideals that these rebels fight for. Also, it makes the revolution seem more intimidating to enemies. When they are alive, heroic figures provide moral to rebels. When they die, heroic figures act as a martyr for their cause. This puts their enemies in a jam, as a heroic figure can be just as dangerous dead as alive. I believe that the figures are being celebrated for their ideals and persons in combinations. This is because ideals and persons become one in the same for heroic figures: their person becomes synonymous with their ideals.