Listen Karl, Marxism is a Utopia (for now)
Imagine a society where we all worth the same. A society where your bakery is worth just as a bakery of your fellow citizen. Where your bread is priced just as bread in the bakery 30 meters down the street. A society where two bakeries share the same customers and everybody has exactly as much as they need.
Classless society! I had wanted to write something on this topic for a while, but never felt it was the right moment. Until last week! I was making a reportage about the Orthodox Jewish Community in London, (which those who understand Croatian can read here) and as I was educating myself about the history of Jews in London, I found out that Karl Marx, one of the most famous Jews of all time who is considered the father of the ideology of the classless state is buried at a Highgate cemetery in North London, just a few neighbourhoods away from my place.
Karl Marx had a vision of a classless society as the ultimate condition of social organisation, expected to occur when true Communism is achieved. I had to go there to tell him something very important: “Classless society is a utopia. Marxism is a utopia!”
He lifted his eyebrows, looked at me with his big bronze eyes and pursed his lips like he was getting mad, while tiny snowflakes were dropping on his thoughtful beard.
“Karl, I am very sorry, but it just can’t be, and now I’ll tell you why,” I said and took a big breath before I started the story.
“Imagine, Karl, you have a bakery… And I have a bakery as well. We both produce sourdough bread which is made in the same type of oven and with the same amount of love, so they taste pretty much the same. And we share the same customers. They don’t care which bakery they buy bread from. As all of us have exactly as much as we need, there is no competition of any kind, therefore no dispute, no conflict, and in the end no wars. Everything is perfectly balanced, and balance brings peace into society, into the world.
It sounds good to you, right, Karl? It sounds good to me as well, but at this point, I have to tell you, it is quite impossible. Why?
Simply because there is no growth in balance, no evolution. At least there is no growth in terms of what modern society consider growth. The reason why there is no growth is because growth requires ups and downs. Only through ups and downs we learn, both individually and collectively.
Growth requires you, Karl, rising the game and producing double the amount of Sourdough that I produce. Growth requires you, Karl, opening a new bakery and taking all of my customers. Growth requires you, Karl, buying a new oven, the one that can produce magnificent Shepard loaf instead of Sourdough bread.
Your up is my down at that point, and both are required for collective growth, learning. My down is a lesson that I need to try harder, and your up is your path towards your vision.
Imagine, Karl, you start producing Shepard loaf in your new amazing electric dome oven, and since you are so smart, you realise you can use it for melting titanium as well. You start producing titanium spindles that Elon Musk, or kids with smartphones who will eventually save us, was missing in their rockets.
But now with your spindles, their rockets finally can fly safe, and they can launch us on Mars and discover sustainable life for us there. In the meantime, due to your success, I have lost everything, but since I can see the wider picture, I can realise your success is my success, it is a collective success. Everything is connected!”
You see, Karl, that can’t happen in the classless society where we both use the traditional wood oven and produce sourdough bread. Yes, there is peace and balance in such a society, but there is no evolution. And that is the reason, Karl, true Communism can’t work in this world. Cause there is no evolution in Communism.
Why do we need growth, you are asking me? Well, I guess it’s because at this point in history ego is ruling the world and ego is never satisfied. Ego needs to keep growing. But let’s leave the ego topic for another time, Karl.
However, Karl, I might have good news for you as well. Your vision seems to be utopian at this point in history, but it might not be a utopia in a certain period in the future. I believe that true Marxism can exist only in a world where people are profoundly spiritually aware. Only the world where people are guided by their essence, rather than their ego, is the world where the classless system of yours, Karl, can work. Because, when people are connected to their essence, when layers of ego are dissolved, that is where their roles lie. And once when we all know our role, there is no bigger achievement, and there is no reason for further searching. If I am confident about my role as a server than baking bread for others is my ultimate pleasure, and there is no need for any kind of economic growth.
The spiritual growth is the one that we can focus on at that point. I am sure you are aware of that, Karl, and I do admire your faith that we can all get there. In the end, everything does change all the time.”
“Social structures are historical and thus not eternal.” — Karl Marx
Disclaimer: “No, Karl, I have not read any of your work. I just wanted to share my view on why egalitarian society can’t work at this point, and you were a great connection. By the next time I arrive, I will have read some of your work and that time you will speak more and I will be listening.”
