Marx's theoretical heritage and modernity. Part 2. Theory and practice of Marxism

The article is a continuation of previous one, published in the preceding issue of this journal. It shows that any philosophical theory and a concept of the social ideal developed on its basis are somehow conditioned by the problems of the existing social reality. According to political leaders, the various models of socialism that existed in the last century represented the practical implementation of Marx’s teachings. Certainly, the Soviet Union appeared as a result of revolutionary activities of Lenin and his associates, who were devoted supporters of Marxism. Why did the socialist project fail in Russia? The article analyzes the problem of correlation between the social ideal developed by the founders of Marxism and the social reality that arose as a result of its implementation. The difference between utopia and a scientifically based social ideal is revealed, the difficulties of implementing any social ideal (theory) are considered. Socialism built in the Soviet Union causes many questions concerning the nature of this society; however, in the process of its construction Lenin and his associates relied on the ideas of the founders of Marxism. The paper studies the reasons for the differences between real socialism and Marx’s social ideal and identifies the factors that contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union. According to the author’s position, among those factors, of great importance was the superficial understanding of both the dialectics of inter-formational transition and criteria for distinguishing various types of society.