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Institute Resource Paper #10
The Philosophy and Methodology of the
Institute
May 2004
Introduction
The purpose of this session is to discuss the necessity for
Marxism and the role in the Institute within the shift from
one epoch to another; the significance and purpose of the
organization of revolutionaries within the overall march of
the revolution; and preparing for future stages and the role
of Marxists in making that happen. The purpose of this paper
is to pull together some of the key concepts in the readings
to help faciliate our discussion.
Marxism and Communism
"Marxism is a science; communism is a
goal"
- "Marxism as the scientific current within communism",
Institute Resource paper #2
The communist movement of the past was born within, matured
within and achieved many of its victories within the struggle
to overthrow the state and a ruling class based on the transition
from agriculture to industry. Eventually, whether by design
or by the logic of the movement, the party must be the "subjective
expression of the objective process" if it is to survive.
The victories of the communist parties in the developed industrial
states have been through fighting for or achieving goals that
were, compatible with the bourgeois state. Such victories
include the struggle for civil rights of the oppressed peoples,
the establisment of trade unions, victorious wars of national
liberation and the defeat of fascism. Until recently, there
have only been subjective or ideological movements for communism.
On the other hand, the communist parties have led numerous,
militant, objective, mass movements for reform goals within
the capitalist system.
Today we see the rise of an objectively communist class.
It is objectively communist because the qualitative transformation
in the economy and society is forcing this class to the margins,
making survival impossible under the conditions of capitalist
property relations. This class cannot survive unless private
property is abolished and society is reconstructed along communist
lines. Communism is no longer simply a dream, or an ideological
conviction or theoretical projection. Communism is emerging
simply as the necessary and, more importantly, realizable
solution to the problems humanity has always faced but could
not solve.
This communist movement is objective, and therefore belongs
to all communists, not just Marxists. It is no longer "our
movement" that Marxists have to lead. Marxism is a very
important current in the communist movement but it is not
the movement. The CLP was disbanded and the NOC (League) came
into existence.
Under these new conditions, the vital significance of Marxist
methodology, particularly Marxist philosophy, reemerges as
a means, "to determine the line of march of history and
the class struggle", to help the movement see its way
through each stage of the struggle, and to determine "what
objective forces are unleashed that will allow the conscious
revolutionaries to play their role and guarantee that the
practical and ideological forces that are heading to communism
can get there most directly and with the least human sacrifice."
("Marxism as the Scientific Current within Communism",
Institute Resource paper #2).
The line of march and the role of the League
"The line of march of the revolution
is the stages of development of the proletarian struggle to
seize political power and transfer capitalist private property
to all of society. "
-- Rally Comrades, April 1992
The science of society and history shows us that, in general,
the line of march is from the scattered economic struggles
of the class to its united political struggles. For there
to be a successful bid for power, the class must gain a sense
of its own class identity, must disentangle itself from the
bourgeoisie's political control and to fight for its own class
interests. It must understand that communism is the solution
to the problems it is fighting. It must come to the recognition
of the need to seize political power and reconstruct society
in the interests of the majority.
If we look at things this way, we can see that the League
is one step in a series of steps that will lead us to political
revolution. Its organizational form is a recognition that
a communist class is beginning to form, that this class must
be united around communism in a mass way. For these reasons,
the League set as its purpose the bringing together the revolutionaries
and uniting them around communism as the solution to the problems
faced by society so that they in turn could spread the message
to the broader movement.
Another necessary aspect of this stage of development is
the rise to a class party which has the indispensable role
of becoming the organizational and educational center for
the class in their struggle for their immediate needs. In
so doing, the class learns the significance of its own true
self and its mission, and learns the necessity of separating
from the ideas, institutions and values of the ruling class.
It is in the midst of ongoing social destruction, the inevitability
of mass uprisings, and the subjective transformation of the
class that it will be possible to take the next step to build
a communist party that is based not only on the growing communist
movement, but on a class that is conscious in its aims, one
that rests on a mass acceptance of communism.
We can look back and see that Marx and Engels used the same
methodology in their involved in the Communist League and
the formation of the 1st international. Using dialectical
and historical materialism they understood that the workers
had to first be pulled together, trained and sent out into
the movement. When conditions changed, they understood that
the gains made from these first steps had to be consolidated
by changing form yet again and the 1st international was formed.
It became the foundation for the various workers parties that
developed throughout Europe and which, in their turn, became
the foundation for the communist movement throughout the world.
Marx and Engels were dealing with a different situation,
but the lessons were the same. That is, understanding that
there is a line of march to the revolutionary process and
that the role of the Marxist is to discern the various stages
of that process and play a role in guaranteeing that it goes
through each of those stages successfully.
Discussion questions:
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Why bother to discuss all this just to
have a discussion about how to run local Institute's?
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Discuss what we are preparing for, and how
the League will help us get there.
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Discuss the distinction between communism
and Marxism. How does this distinction help us in our work
both in the League and in the training of Marxists?
The role of Marxists and Marxist education
"The services rendered by Mar and Engels to the working
class may be expressed in a few words thus: they taught the
working class to know itself and be conscious of itself, and
they substituted science for dreams." -- Lenin, "Frederick
Engels", 1895
Marxist education was once the task of Marxist parties. But
most of the old Marxist parties are dissolving, or are terribly
out of step with the new conditions. Yet, there must still be
a means of guaranteeing the dissemination of the Marxist method
and the training of Marxists.
Getting through the line of march is not an automatic process.
It requires the application and intervention of scientifically
formulated doctrines, strategies and tactics to guarantee the
transition from the social destruction and massive confusion
and eventual crisis to the organization of forces, the exertion
of the will of those forces, and the reconstruction of society.
There must be an understanding of each stage the process goes
through, and what to do in each one of those stages.
Marxist philosophy does not give answers, but it does point
the way to where those answers lie. To be guided by philosophy
demands thinking, research, analysis and the transference of
ideas into organizational activity. Proceeding from philosophy
is the only guarantee that we will develop the theories, doctrine
and ideology that are necessary that mark a fully mature, revolutionary
organization.
Faced with such a task and in such a period, we cannot simply
rely on the doctrines of the past and we cannot have Marxists
who rely simply upon the thinking and teaching of others. They
must think for themselves, and they must prepare themselves
to teach others. This cannot be achieved without inculcating
a "culture of study" which relies upon a variety of
means -- self-study, self-education, study circles, etc. --
but has the specific purpose of striving to deeply understand
the Marxist method with the intention of applying it to revolutionary
work, solving the questions the revolutionary process presents.
It for this reason that the Institute focuses on the method
of Marxism rather than the conclusions. It is for this reason
that the Institute makes available as many materials and resources
that it can.
At the same time, we must have teachers. Marxism is a science.
It does not arise simply from experience. Its content must be
learned; it is not a matter of consensus or interpretation.
The form through which this learning takes place can be as varied
as those doing the learning. But we must not forget that we
are preparing ourselves, and others, to be teachers.
In no way should this concept of teaching be construed to mean
that only certain individuals can be or become teachers. The
liberating power of Marxism is that it teaches the revolutionary
to know the world unfettered by preconceived notions. We would
be poor Marxists indeed if we did not follow our own advice.
In closing: The Institute is dedicated to training revolutionaries
in the science of society, or Marxism. Its formation and purpose
has been prompted by i the qualitative transformation underway,
the transition from one epoch to another. The local Institutes
play the pivotal role in the dissemination of Marxism at this
time. The Marxists here today play a pivotal role in seeing
to it that other Marxists are trained who are capable of carrying
on not just the struggle, but who understand their responsibility
to take history through its last and final step toward the world
for which generations have always longed.
Discussion Questions: How does our content and our approach
to education express the objective necessities of the times?
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