Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-dsjbd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-23T08:49:36.472Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Why Do Communist Parties Advocate Pluralism?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 June 2011

Peter Hardi
Peter Hardi
Affiliation:
Karl Marx University
Get access

Abstract

The concept of pluralism has been a familiar one in political science since the first decade of this century, and has appeared in different theoretical frameworks. Pluralism is regarded as inherent in Western democracies, but it has also been interpreted as a transitional form leading to socialism. The Western communist parties, in adopting the concept of pluralism, have found a theoretical justification for abandoning the concepts of a leading model and one authentic party. The new doctrine that embraces pluralism advocates that the communist parties transform their societies to a more advanced, partly socialistic state, and then attempt to gain power by consensual means. The main issues of debate on the transformation are the abolition of the dictatorship of the proletariat, the guarantee of human rights, and the pluralist power structure.

Type
Research Article
Information
World Politics , Volume 32 , Issue 4 , July 1980 , pp. 531 - 552
Copyright
Copyright © Trustees of Princeton University 1980

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1 These parties include: the British Communist Party, the French Communist Party, the Greek Communist Party (so-called external wing), the Spanish Communist Party, the Swedish Left (communist) Party, in Europe; and the Australian Communist Party, the Japanese Communist Party, and the Venezuelan Communist Party (known as the Movement Towards Socialism, or MAS), outside Europe.

2 Some of the most significant European works are: Barker, Ernest, The Citizen's Choice (Cambridge:Cambridge University Press, 1937Google Scholar); Barker, , Political Thought in England 1848–1914 (London;Oxford University Press, 1915Google Scholar); Coker, Francis W., “Pluralism,” in Seligman, E.R.A., ed., Encyclopaedia of the Social Sciences, XXII (New York:Macmillan, 1937) 170Google Scholar–74; Coker, , “Pluralistic Theories and the Attack upon State Sovereignty,” in Merriam, Charles E. and Barnes, Harry E., eds., A History of Political Theories. Recent Times (New York:Macmillan, 1924), 80–119Google Scholar; Figgis, John Neville, Churches in the Modern State (London:Longmans, Green, 1913Google Scholar); Laski, Harold J., “The Pluralistic State,” in Laski, , The Foundation of Sovereignty (New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1921), 232Google Scholar–49; Laski, , Studies in the Problem of Sovereignty (New Haven:Yale University Press, 1917Google Scholar); Fraenkel, Ernst, Kollektive Demokratie (Berlin:Neuer Staat, 1929Google Scholar); Gierke, Otto, Das deutsche Genossenschaftsrecht, I, Rechtsgeschichte der deutschen Genossenschaft (Berlin:Weidmann, 1868Google Scholar); Preuss, Hugo, Deutschlands republikanische Reichsverfassung (Berlin:Neuer Staat, 1923Google Scholar); Rathenau, Walther, Der neue Staat (Berlin:S. Fischer, 1919Google Scholar); Paul-Boncour, Joseph, Le féderalisme économique (Paris:F. Alcan, 1901Google Scholar).

In the United States, see Beard, Charles A., An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States (New York:Macmillan, 1913Google Scholar); Dewey, John, The Public and Its Problems (Chicago:Swallow Press, 1954Google Scholar); Deborah Ellis, Ellen, “The Pluralistic State,” American Political Science Review, xiv (August 1920), 393–407CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Sabine, George H., “Pluralism: A Point of View,” American Political Science Review, xvii (February 1923), 34–50CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

3 In Europe see, for instance, Fraenkel, Ernst, Deutschland und die westlichen Demo-kratien (Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 1968Google Scholar); Loewenstein, Karl, Verfassungslehre (Tubin-gen:J.C.B. Mohr, 1959Google Scholar); Narr, Wolf-Dieter, Pluralistische Gesellschaft (Hannover:Niedersachsische Landeszentrale fur politische Bildung, 1969Google Scholar); Offe, Klaus, “Das plu-ralistische System von organisierten Interessen,” in Varain, Heinz Joseph, ed., Interessenverbünde in Deutschland (Cologne: Kiepenheuer & Witsch, 1973Google Scholar); Briefs, Goetz Antony, ed., Laisscz-faire-Pluralismus (Berlin:Duncker & Humblot, 1966Google Scholar); Doeker, Giinther and Steffani, Winfried, eds., Klassenjustiz und Pluralismus (Hamburg:Hoffman & Campe, 1973Google Scholar).

In the United States, among some of the most significant works are Dahl, Robert A., “The Concept of Power,” Behavioral Science, 11 (July 1957Google Scholar), 201-15; Dahl, , “A Critique of the Ruling Elite Model,” American Political Science Review, Vol. 52 (June 1958), 463CrossRefGoogle Scholar–69; Dahl, , Pluralist Democracy in the United States: Conflict and Consent (Chicago:Rand McNally, 1967Google Scholar); Dahl, , A Preface to Democratic Theory (Chicago:Chicago University Press, 1956Google Scholar); Dahl, , Who Governs? (New Haven:Yale University Press, 1961Google Scholar); Kornhauser, William, The Politics of Mass Society (Glencoe, Ill.:Free Press, 1959Google Scholar); Kornhauser, , “Power Elite and Veto Groups,” in Lipset, Seymour M. and Lowen-thal, Leo, eds., Culture and Social Character (Glencoe, Ill.:Free Press, 1961Google Scholar); Polsby, Nelson W., Community Power and Political Theory (New Haven:Yale University Press, 1963Google Scholar); Verba, Sidney, Small Groups and Political Behavior: A Study of Leadership (Princeton:Princeton University Press, 1961Google Scholar); Wolfinger, Raymond E., The Politics of Progress (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.:Prentice-Hall, 1973Google Scholar); Lijphart, Arend, Democracy in Plural Societies: A Comparative Exploration (New Haven:Yale University Press, 1977Google Scholar); Truman, David B., The Governmental Process: Political Interests and Public Opinion (New York:Knopf, 1951Google Scholar).

4 Eisfeld, Rainer, Pluralismus zwischen Liberalismus und Sozialismus (Stuttgart:Kohlhammer, 1972Google Scholar); Moulin, Leo, Socialism of the West (London:V. Gollancz, 1948Google Scholar); Alexander Schwan, “Die Herausforderung des Pluralismus durch den Marxismus,” in Doeker and Steffani (fn. 3), 441–81.

5 See, for instance, Berlinguer, Enrico, Austeritá, occasione per trasformare I'ltalia (Rome:Riuniti, 1977Google Scholar); Berlinguer, , “For New Roads towards Socialism in Italy and Europe,” The Italian Communist, Nos. 2–3 (July 1976), 54–65Google Scholar; Hamm, H., “Doku-mentatio,” Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (March 27, 1976Google Scholar); Eric J. Hobsbawn, ed., ll PCI: Intervista con Giorgio Napolitano (Rome: Laterza, 1976); Ingrao, Pietro, Masse e potere (Rome:Riuniti, 1977Google Scholar); “Joint Declaration by the PCI and the PCF,” The Italian Communist, Nos. 5–6 (December 1975), 74–79; Lombardo-Radice, Lucio, “Plura-lismus in einer sozialistischen Gesellschaft,” in Kellner, Erich, ed., Christentum und Marxismus (Wien:Europa Verlag, 1966), 251Google Scholar–62; Radice, Lombardo, “Due forme del pluralismo,” Rinascita, No. 7 (February 1976Google Scholar); PCF, Le parti communiste français: vivre libres (Paris: Édition de l'Humanité, 1975); Edoardo Perna, “Il Parliamento e il pluralismo politico-sociale,” Critica Marxista, No. 6 (December 1975). See also various and resolutions, especially of the 22nd and 23rd Congress of the French Communist munist Party, and of the 14th and 15th Congress of the Italian Communist Party.

6 For more about the conception of institutionalized processes as an approach to analyzing human societies and their transformations, see Polanyi, Karl, The Great Transformation (Boston:Beacon, 1968Google Scholar).

7 First in Bell, Daniel, The Coming of Post-Industrial Society: A Venture in Social Forecasting (New York:Basic Books, 1973Google Scholar).

8 Johnson, Paul M., “Political Development, Penetration, and the Politics of Economic Policy in the European Communist States,” Ph.D. diss. (Stanford University, 1978Google Scholar); Martin, Andrew, “Political Constraints on Economic Strategies in Advanced Industrial Societies,” Comparative Political Studies, x (October 1977), 323CrossRefGoogle Scholar–54.

9 Cf. Huntington, Samuel P., “Post-Industrial Politics: How Benign Will It Be?”, Comparative Politics, vi (January 1974), 163CrossRefGoogle Scholar–91; Inglehart, Ronald, “Policy Problems of Advanced Industrial Societies,” Comparative Political Studies, x (October 1977), 291CrossRefGoogle Scholar–98; Lasswell, Howard D., “The World Revolution of Our Time,” in Lasswell, and Lerner, Daniel, eds., World Revolutionary Elites (Cambridge, Mass.:M.I.T. Press, 1966), 29–96Google Scholar; Rose, Richard, “Models of Governing,” Comparative Politics, v (July 1973), 465CrossRefGoogle Scholar–96; Seligman, Lester G., “Political Elites Reconsidered,” Comparative Politics, vi (January 1974), 299–314CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Weber, Jiirgen, Interessengruppen im politischen System der Bundesrepublik Deutschland (Munich:Bayerische Landeszentrale für politische Bildungsarbeit, 1976Google Scholar).

10 Hobsbawn (fn. 5); Santini, A., “Intervista con Giorgio Napolitano,” L'Europeo, February 6, 1976Google Scholar.

11 Cf. Rossanda, R., “The Risk of Spontaneity and the Logic of the Institution: An Interview with J. P. Sartre,” Telos, iv (Summer 1969), 191–205Google Scholar.

12 Schmitter, Phillipe C., “Modes of Interest Intermediation and Models of Societal Change in Western Europe,” Comparative Political Studies, x (April 1977), 7–38CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

13 See Lenin, V. I., “The State and Revolution,” in Lenin, , Selected Worlds (Moscow:Progress Publisher, 1975) 238–327Google Scholar. It is interesting to compare the new theses of the Italian communists with the late views of Friedrich Engels; e.g., “Zur Kritik des sozialdemokratischen Programmentwurfes 1891,” Die Neue Zeit, 1 (xx, 1892), 10–13Google Scholar; Delogu, Ignazio, ed., La Via europea al socialismo (Rome:Newton Compton, 1976Google Scholar).

14 Gramsci, Antonio, Note sul Machiavelli (Rome:Riuniti, 1977Google Scholar); Congress of the Institute, Gramsci, Politico e storia nell'opere di Gramsci (Florence:Istituto Gramsci, 1977Google Scholar); Berlinguer, Enrico, Unita del popolo per salvare Vltalia (Rome:Riuniti, 1975Google Scholar); Amendola, Giorgio, “The Italian Road to Socialism,” New Left Review, No. 106 (November-December 1977Google Scholar); Fedele, M., “Spontaneita e pluralismo,” Rinascita, No. 39 (September 1976Google Scholar); Lombardo-Radice, L., “Partito, lotta di classe e pluralismo,” Rinascita, No. 44 (November 1976Google Scholar); F. Mussi, “Intelettuali e potere nell'Italia che combia-II 'moderno pfincipe' e il pluralismo,” Rinascita, No. 30 (July 1976); P. Spriano, “Lo spettro deH'egemonia-il dibattito sur pluralismo e democrazia,” Rinascita, No. 38 (September 1976); “II PCI, l'Europa, il socialismo” (Tavola rotonda), Rinascita, No. 11 (March 1976).

13 See a series of interviews with Italian communist mayors, “Communists in the local self-governing organs,” Peace and Socialism (Prague), No. 10 (October 1977).

10 Gramsci, “II moderno principe: Egemonia (societa civile) e divisione dei poteri,” in Note sul Machiavelli (fn. 14), 156–85.

17 See the numerous articles in Rinascita and France Noupelle in 1977 and 1978, especially the ones by Kanapa, J. and Ellenstein, J.; see also Carillo, S., Eurocomunismo y estado (Barcelona:Editorial Critica, 1977Google Scholar); Fabre, Jean, Hincker, Francois, and Seve, Lucien, Les communistes et l'état (Paris:Editions Sociales, 1977Google Scholar).

18 Berlinguer (fn. 5); Berlinguer, , La politica internazionale dei communisti italiani, 1975-1976 (Rome:Riuniti, 1976Google Scholar); Kanapa, J., “Les caracteristiques de l'eurocommu-nisme,” I'Humanite, November 29, 1977Google Scholar; Macaluso, M., “I tesi dei PCI e PCSU,” I'Unita, July 5, 1977Google Scholar.

19 Cf. Luelmo, Julio and Winston, Henry, Eurocomunismo y Estado o la desintegración del P.C.E. y la ruptura con el movimiento comunista international (Madrid:AKAL, 1978Google Scholar).

20 Delogu (fn. 13); cf. the French Communist Party's thesis on “socialism in national colors.”

21 L. Lombardo-Radice, La Stampa, September 16, 1977.

22 Togliatti, Palmiro, La via italiana al socialismo (Rome:Riuniti, 1964Google Scholar).

23 Ingrao, P., “Un primo dibattito sul pluralismo politico,” Rinascita, No. 27 (June 1964Google Scholar); Ingrao, , “Sul rapporto tra democrazia e socialismo,” Rinascita, No. 21 (May 1964Google Scholar); Lombardo-Radice (fn. 5) , 251–62.