Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Communism |
CommunismNoun1. A form of socialism that abolishes private ownership. 2. A political theory favoring collectivism in a classless society. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "communism" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1861. (references) |
Etymology: Communism \Com"mu*nism\, noun. [French expression communisme, from commun common.]. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Health | A totalitarian system of government in which a single authoritarian party controls state-owned means of production with the professed aim of establishing a classless society. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Communism is a theory and system of social and political organization that dominated much of the history of the 20th century. In theory, communism is a classless society in which all property is owned by the community as a whole and where all people enjoy equal social and economic status. As a political movement, communism sought to overthrow capitalism through a workers’ revolution and redistribute the wealth into the hands of the proletariat, or working class.
Marxists believe that just as society has evolved from feudalism to capitalism, it will evolve into socialism and eventually communism.
Many western intellectuals have advocated Communist ideas. In his 4th-century BC work The Republic, the Greek philosopher Plato proposed the communal ownership of property by an intellectual ruling class, to put the welfare of the state above personal desire and moderate the greed of the producing classes.
In 1534 John of Leyden turned the city of Munster into a commune called "New Jerusalem" in expectation of the Second Coming and introduced polygamy (going partway towards Plato's ideal) before the city was taken by a Catholic army, leading to a massacre. Thomas More's Utopia was organized along communist lines.
The idea floated around during the Enlightenment, exerting varying amounts of influence on the philosophes. The greatest amount was on Rousseau, who was to have the greatest influence on the French Revolution.
Many 19th Century idealists, disgusted by the ongoing oppression and decadence created by the Industrial Revolution, broke away from society to form communal utopias-although most were short-lived. An example was Robert Owen's New Harmony community in Indiana.
At the current stage of capitalism the dominant bourgeoisie (or capitalists who controlled the means of production) exploited and oppressed the proletariat (or industrial workers) by paying low wages while keeping the profits to themselves. In other words, workers were compelled to labor not merely to meet their own needs but also those of the exploiting ruling class. Marx thought it was only a matter of time before the working classes of the world, realizing their common goals, would unite to overthrow the capitalists and redistribute the wealth. The establishment of communism would be the inevitable outcome of a historical process.
According to Marx, capitalism would evolve into socialism then eventually to communism. Marx specified a transitional period in which the workers would form a socialist society. A temporary dictatorship of the proletariat, would be needed to seize property from the bourgeoisie minority.
Marxists dispute this usage, reserving the term communism only for the final evolutionary stage of society (see socialism). In Marxism, communism refers to the ideal stateless, propertyless, and classless society with no oppression or exploitation and general abundance and freedom. Society runs in accord with the principle: To each according to their needs, from each according to their ability. A common exemplification of the concept is "if a successful architect is single, he only needs one loaf of bread a day, and if a member of the proletariat has seven children with his wife, they need nine loaves of bread a day; neither have to pay for the bread at the baker's, and they both ask for exactly as much bread as they need -- the same applies for any other property, such as the apartment or the car".
Many nations in the 20th century were run by such Communist Parties, who identified themselves as true communists implementing socialism, and attempted to govern themselves according to their interpretation of Marxist principles.
The following is a list of countries that currently have self-proclaimed socialist republics:
For a general discussion of the practical consequences of communist rule, see communist government. For an exposition of the formal and semi-formal mechanisms of government and constitutional workings in communist countries, see communist state.Early Communism
Communism existed since ancient times. Primitive humans, living in tribes, worked for the benefit of their entire clan and shared the fruits of their labor. The Ideas of Marx and Engels
The ideas of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, epitomized by their Communist Manifesto, transformed communism into a revolutionary movement. Marx and Engels claimed Communism did not have to occur in isolated communities, but globally. According to the Manifesto all history can be explained in terms of class struggles. In each society, a minority of people owned or controlled the means of production, constituting the ruling class. The vast majority of people owned and controlled very little. Communist Countries and Governments
Communism is sometimes also used to mean, particularly in capitalist nations, a totalitarian regime run by the Communist Party where central planning is employed as a means of production and distribution. Because totalitarian regimes of this nature have often committed human rights abuses of varying degrees, some regard this idea of Communism as a dangerous ideology, similar to fascism or nazism.
The following is a list of countries that have had self-proclaimed socialist republics, but no longer exist or are no longer under such regimes:
Quite a few other countries not listed above (see: Soviet republics) have been more or less constrained to become socialist republics due to international circumstances, while some of the countries listed above probably wouldn't have been so eager to become socialist, had the international circumstances been different.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Communism."
Synonyms: CommunismSynonyms: Bolshevism, Leninism, Maoism, Marxism. (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Government | Democracy, republicanism; communism, statism, state socialism; socialism; conservatism, toryism; liberalism, whigism; theocracy;democracy, republicanism; communism, statism, state socialism; socialism; conservatism, toryism; liberalism, whigism; theocracy; constitutional monarchy. |
Participation | Noun: participation; cotenancy, joint tenancy; occupancy in common, possession in common, tenancy in common; joint stock, common stock; co-partnership, partnership; communion; community of possessions, community of goods; communism, socialism; cooperation. |
Philanthropy | Common weal; socialism, communism, Fourierism, |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Communism |
| English words defined with "communism": arrest ♦ bolshevism ♦ Castroism, Cenogamy, check, collectivism, commie, communisation, communist, Communist Party, communistic, communization, contain, contend ♦ Dalton Trumbo, deviationism, deviationist ♦ hold back ♦ Karl Marx ♦ Leninism ♦ Maoism, Marx, Marxism, Marxism-Leninism ♦ postulate, punctiliously ♦ side by side, Sovietism, stop ♦ Truman doctrine, Trumbo, turn back. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "communism": Civitas Solis. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | Why, that's communism! (The Mad Miss Manton; writing credit: Philip G. Epstein) | |
Clever | In communism, man oppresses man. In capitalism, it's the other way around. (references; author: unknown) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Communism (1919) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
Books |
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Periodicals |
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Theater & Movies | |||
Music |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Spirit of '76: liberty, democracy, and peace, contrasted to Spirit of '37: communism, dictatorship, and war. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | 'Tis the season to be jolly, my good man! We won - did you know that? Capitalism is triumphant. Communism lies in ruins. Our system prevails! We won! Smile!' / / Oliphant. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Stop communism! It's everybody's job. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Propaganda flier depicting two images of education in Thailand; one of a teacher lecturing students under Communism, and the other of students doing scientific experiments and math under freedom. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Fight against communism for freedom!. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Mothers' Crusade for Victory over Communism : Why should we help communists kill Americans?. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Fuck communism. Credit: Library of Congress. | ||
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Alexander Solzhenitsyn | For us in Russia communism is a dead dog. For many people in the West, it is still a living lion. |
Ernest Renan | Communism is in conflict with human nature. |
Grover Cleveland | The trusts and combinations -- the communism of pelf. . . . |
John Kenneth Galbraith | Under capitalism, man exploits man. Under communism, it's just the opposite. |
Karl Marx | A specter is haunting Europe -- the specter of communism. |
Pierre Joseph Proudhon | Communism is a society where each one works according to his ability and gets according to his needs. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Author | Date | Quotation |
Communist Manifesto | 1848 | A spectre is haunting Europe -- the spectre of Communism. (reference) |
Winston S. Churchill | 1946 | Except in the British Commonwealth and in the United States where Communism is in its infancy, the Communist parties or fifth columns constitute a growing challenge and peril to Christian civilization. ("Iron Curtain" Speech) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Title | Author | Quote |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | Communism and agrarian law think they have solved the second problem |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Business | The sweeping economic and political changes that have transformed Poland since the collapse of communism in 1989 have had significant effects on the Polish defense sector. (references) | |
In Poland, as in most countries of Central Europe, the change from communism to a free market economy has resulted in a flurry of real estate development activities with significant legal, economic, political and social ramifications. (references) | ||
Cefarm Poznan is the latest company to be put up for sale, and PGF, Prosper, Cormay and Orfe have showed interest in purchasing it. The fate of Central Cefarm, which was the sole importer under Communism and the main competitor to Orfe in the 1990s, is being viewed with interest by many companies. (references) | ||
Children | Russia | The status of many children has deteriorated since the collapse of communism because of falling living standards, an increase in the number of broken homes, and domestic violence. (references) |
Civil Liberties | Singapore | They must renounce communism, sever all organizational ties with the CPM, and pledge not to engage in activities prejudicial to the State's internal security. (references) |
Indonesia | In May the Islamic Youth Movement (GPI), an Islamist organization, burned books on Karl Marx and threatened bookstores with the forcible removal of books dealing with communism. (references) | |
Economic History | Czech Republic | State ownership of businesses was estimated to be about 97% under communism. (references) |
Bulgaria | Bilateral relations between the two nations improved dramatically after the fall of communism. (references) | |
Poland | Since the collapse of communism in 1989, potential expropriation in Poland has not been an issue. (references) | |
Human Rights | Bulgaria | Partly as a legacy of communism and partly because of the court system's structural and personnel problems, many citizens have little confidence in the judicial system. (references) |
Political Economy | Croatia | After its devastating defeats in the 2000 parliamentary and presidential elections, the HDZ has had difficulty regrouping and has not identified a clear alternative policy, and has focused instead on warning of the dangers of a return to communism and other nationalist themes. (references) |
Libya | The Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya is a dictatorship that has been ruled by Colonel Mu'ammar Al-Qadhafi (the "Brother Leader and Guide of the Revolution") since 1969, when he led a military coup that overthrew King Idris I. Borrowing from Islamic and pan-Arab ideas, Qadhafi created a political system that rejects democracy and political parties and purports to establish a "third way" superior to capitalism and communism. (references) | |
Women | Kyrgyz Republic | With the end of communism, traditional attitudes toward women have reasserted themselves strongly in the countryside, where women are relegated to the roles of wife and mother, and educational opportunities are curtailed. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Phrase(s) |
Rush Limbaugh | That's the new home of communism, where they tell you what you can do with your land and your income. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Speaker | Term | Phrase(s) |
Harry S. Truman | 1945-1953 | Communism holds that the world is so deeply divided into opposing classes that war is inevitable. |
Dwight Eisenhower | 1953-1961 | The divisive force is International Communism and the power that it controls. |
John F. Kennedy | 1961-1963 | There are some who say that communism is the wave of the future. |
Lyndon B. Johnson | 1963-1969 | In Asia, communism wears a more aggressive face. |
Ronald Reagan | 1981-1989 | I have seen the birth of communism and the death of communism. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Communism" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 100.00% of the time. "Communism" is used about 957 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 100% | 957 | 7,603 |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| Hypenated Usage | |
Ending with "communism": anti-communism. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "communism"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | komunizëm. (various references) | |
Arabic | مذهب مبنى على الشيوعية, شيوعية. (various references) | |
Bulgarian | комунизъм. (various references) | |
Chinese | 共"主義 , 共产主义. (various references) | |
Czech | komunismus. (various references) | |
Dutch | communisme. (various references) | |
Esperanto | komunismo. (various references) | |
Faeroese | kommunisma. (various references) | |
Farsi | مرام اشتراکی , کمونیسم (Communalism), اصول اشتراکی . (various references) | |
Finnish | kommunismi. (various references) | |
French | communisme. (various references) | |
German | kommunismus. (various references) | |
Greek | κομμουνισμόσ, κομμουνισμός. (various references) | |
Hebrew | קומו יזם. (various references) | |
Hungarian | kommunizmus. (various references) | |
Indonesian | komunisme. (various references) | |
Italian | comunismo. (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 共"主義 (collectivism), 共"主義 (collectivism), 共" , コミュニケーション科学基礎 "究所 (choral, collaboration, collaborative, collaborator, collage, collagen, collie, column, columnist, COM, COMECON, comedian, comedy, comet, Cominform, comment, commentator, comment-out, committee, common, common carrier, common language, common sense, Commonwealth Day, communicate, Communication Science Laboratories, communications intelligence, communications satellite, communicator, communist, Communist Information Bureau, community, community care, community center, community college, community media, community paper, community school, community sports, computer output microfilm system, comsat, corrida, corundum, Council for Mutual Economic Assistance, Komintern, Komsomol, Korea, operator in a telemarketing business, stand-alone feature article framed by a box). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | きょうさ"しゅぎ (collectivism), きょうさ" (approval, authorization, co-operation, mutual aid, strong acid, support), コミュニズ . (various references) | |
Korean | 공산주의. (various references) | |
Manx | cummynys. (various references) | |
Papiamen | komunismo. (various references) | |
Pig Latin | ommunismcay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | comunismo. (various references) | |
Romanian | comunism. (various references) | |
Russian | коммунизм. (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | komunizam. (various references) | |
Spanish | comunismo. (various references) | |
Swahili | ukoministi. (various references) | |
Swedish | kommunism. (various references) | |
Turkish | komünizm (communistic), komünízm. (various references) | |
Turkmen | kommunizm (r). (various references) | |
Ukrainian | комунізм. (various references) | |
Vietnamese | chủ nghĩa cộng sản. (various references) | |
Welsh | comiwnyddiaeth. (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "communism": communisms. (additional references) | |
Words ending with "communism": anticommunism. (additional references) | |
Words containing "communism": anticommunisms. (additional references) | |
| |
"Communism" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: commonise, commonish, commuism, communi, communis, communisim, communisme, communisum, Communizm, communsim, comuni, comunic, comunism, Kommunis. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "communism" (pronounced kÄ"myuni'zum) |
| 7 | -y u n i' z u m | unionism. |
| 6 | -u n i' z u m | abolitionism, agrarianism, anachronism, antagonism, authoritarianism, mechanism, microorganism, obstructionism, organism, paganism, parkinsonism, perfectionism, protectionism, puritanism, chauvinism, creationism, determinism, egalitarianism, expansionism, expressionism, feminism, hedonism, hooliganism, humanism, illusionism, impressionism, interventionism, isolationism, lesbianism, republicanism, revisionism, satanism, sectarianism, tokenism, totalitarianism, vegetarianism. |
| 5 | -n i' z u m | modernism, monism, opportunism. |
| 4 | -i' z u m | absenteeism, absolutism, activism, adventurism, alcoholism, altruism, amateurism, aneurism, animism, aphorism, astigmatism, atavism, atheism, autism, baptism, barbarism, bilingualism, bolshevism, boosterism, botulism, mercantilism, mesmerism, metabolism, methodism, militarism, minimalism, monasticism, monetarism, monotheism, moralism, multiculturalism, multilateralism, mutualism, mysticism, narcissism, nationalism, nativism, naturalism, negativism, nepotism, neutralism, nihilism, optimism, ostracism, overoptimism, pacifism, parallelism, parochialism, pastoralism, paternalism, patriotism, pessimism, pharisaism, pietism, plagiarism, pluralism, polymorphism, polytheism, populism, positivism, pragmatism, professionalism, provincialism, racialism, racism, radicalism, realism, cannibalism, capitalism, catechism, centralism, classicism, collectivism, colonialism, commercialism, conservatism, consumerism, corporatism, counterterrorism, criticism, cronyism, cubism, cynicism, dandyism, defeatism, deism, despotism, diamagnetism, diastrophism, dimorphism, dogmatism, Druidism, dualism, dwarfism, dynamism, egoism, egotism, electromagnetism, elitism, embolism, emotionalism, empiricism, entrepreneurialism, environmentalism, ergotism, eroticism, escapism, ethnocentrism, euphemism, evangelism, extremism, factionalism, fanaticism, fascism, fatalism, favoritism, federalism, ferromagnetism, fetishism, feudalism, formalism, fundamentalism, futurism, geotropism, gnosticism, gradualism, helotism, heroism, hypnotism, idealism, imperialism, incrementalism, individualism, intellectualism, internationalism, Irredentism, isomorphism, jingoism, journalism, leftism, legalism, liberalism, lyricism, magnetism, mannerism, masochism, materialism, recidivism, relativism, rheumatism, romanticism, sadism, secularism, sensationalism, separatism, sexism, skepticism, socialism, statism, stoicism, supernaturalism, surrealism, symbolism, synergism, territorialism, terrorism, theism, tourism, truism, vandalism, vigilantism, voluntarism, volunteerism, voyeurism. |
| 3 | -z u m | bosom, microcosm, neoplasm, orgasm, phantasm, prism, careerism, chasm, cytoplasm, enthusiasm, iconoclasm, ism, sarcasm, schism, spasm. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "c-i-m-m-m-n-o-s-u" | |
-2 letters: coniums, cummins. | |
-3 letters: conium, cousin, cumins, cummin, momism, monism, mucins, muonic, nomism, osmium, summon. | |
-4 letters: cions, coins, conus, cumin, icons, incus, minus, momus, mucin, mumms, munis, muons, music, onium, osmic, scion, sonic, uncos. | |
-5 letters: cion, coin, coni, cons, icon, ions, miso, mocs, momi, moms, mons, mumm, mums, muni, muns, muon, nims, noms, nous, onus. | |
| Words containing the letters "c-i-m-m-m-n-o-s-u" | |
+1 letter: communisms. | |
+2 letters: communalism. | |
+3 letters: communalisms. | |
+4 letters: anticommunism, immunochemist. | |
+5 letters: anticommunisms, immunochemists, mummifications. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Quotations: Familiar | 9. Quotations: Historic 10. Quotations: Fiction 11. Quotations: Non-fiction 12. Quotations: Spoken | 13. Quotations: Speeches 14. Usage Frequency 15. Expressions 16. Expressions: Internet | 17. Translations: Modern 18. Derivations 19. Rhymes 20. Anagrams | 21. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
