Communism vs Marxism: Difference and Comparison

Politics plays a major role in molding a nation. From Democracy to kingship, there lies diversity and several ways to govern a country. Theories like Marxism and communism exist that maintain a balance in the world.

The ideologies given by great minds are someway effective. However, it’s important to note the difference.

Key Takeaways

1. Communism is a political and economic system in which the means of production are owned and controlled by the community. At the same time, Marxism is a social, economic, and political theory developed by Karl Marx.
2. Marxism aims to create a classless society by abolishing private property, while communism aims to create a community where wealth is distributed equally among all members.
3. Marxism is a theory that provides the basis for communism and other socialist movements, while communism is an application of Marxist theory.

Communism vs Marxism

Communism and Marxism are related but distinct concepts. Marxism is a broader social, political, and economic theory that Karl Marx developed, forming the basis for communism. Communism, as a political ideology, seeks to create a classless society with shared ownership of resources and the means of production directly inspired by Marxist thought.

Communism is a social, political, or economic idea aiming to establish a communist society that provides common ownership of means of production. Also, it’s aimed at the absence of social class, money, and the state. We can also say Communism is a particular form of socialism.

Marxism is management that analysis where there’s no difference between the affluent party and the poor people. It’s a philosophy or an ideology of Karl Marx where all the people are equal and respected. Marxism views that just as the people are what it differs from communists from Marxists.

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Communism	Marxism
Person behind	Communism is someway derived from this ideology of Marxism.	Karl Marx is the sole person who proposed the idea of Marxism.
Application	Communism could be a possible practical application based on Marxism.	Marxism can be considered as a theoretical concept of understanding thoughts.
Overview	Communism is a type of government that governs a particular sector or a political movement.	Marxism is a method to see the universe as a system to analyse and predict.
Dependency	From Marxism, communism has derived, and hence it’s dependent.	We cannot say that Marxism was dependent on communism.
Framework	It’s stateless management where everybody is equal irrespective of economic status or gender.	The framework on which this system is developed is Marxism.

What is Communism?

People are marginalized. Some are weak, so some are powerful. Some are either poor, so some are Richie rich. In this case, where there exist odds and evens in society, it’s important to regulate a protocol where everybody is equal irrespective of status.

Communism is a philosophical, social, political, or economic idea where everybody is considered equal no matter where you are from or what you do to earn food.

The ultimate objective is to establish a system of communist society, socio-economic order that focuses on ideas of ownership of means of production and no presence of Social class, wealth, and the region.

It includes several ideologies and thought bank that includes Marxism ideologies. It includes social democracy that ensures that the formation and the ownership belong to the people.

There are two types of society. The first one is the working class, which works under someone to earn money and meet the necessary requirements.

The second one is the capitalist society where people work under them, earning a huge sum and profits in return. It’s a minority group since there are fewer people included in capitalist society. Since 1840, communism has been sought as socialism.

What is Marxism?

Understanding the relationship between classes and establishing a network is the prime objective of Marxism theory. Given by Karl Marx predominantly focuses on the socioeconomic analysis side that uses the materialistic interpretation of historical development. 

Originated in the 19th century AD by the German Philosopher.

As time passed by, the ideology started to take new shapes and forms and kept on modifying. Since it’s so altered with time, it’s hard to explain the real original theory given by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. It affects global academics, followed by affecting many fields.

Fields like anthropology, archaeology, art theory, criminology, cultural studies, film theory, historiography, media studies, political science, psychology, economics, education, sociology, urban planning, theatre, literary criticism, geography, and ethics have been found to be most affected by this theory.

Well, it’s evident that with time and people, things started to develop and inculcated new habits of placing thoughts and good suggestions to avoid several riots and people quarrels. Also, Marx’s theory plays a vital and active role in shaping the world and the way societies think.

Either it’s a majority of the working society or the minority one. To maintain order and peace in the world, it is important to rule out important laws and theories that will aid anyone, irrespective of class and form.

Main Differences Between Communism and Marxism

1. The communism theory follows the Marxism ideology and can be said as the child, while the Marxism theory can be said as the father.
2. The idea of communism comes from socio-economic interpretation, while the idea of Marxism comes from Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.
3. Communism is a practical application, while Marxism is a theory.
4. Communism is a political movement, like a government or governing body, while Marxism is a system to analyze the materialistic interpretation.
5. Communism is all about equality and stateless realization, while Marxism is just a framework by which any State is built.

References

1. https://philpapers.org/rec/DOUTIO-4
2. https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1525/9780520346901/html