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Form of society
In social and political science, a social system refers to the way in which a society lives together and its structure. This can be divided into a ruling elite and subjects with little freedom, possibly including people who are slaves with no freedom at all, or it can consist of people who are completely equal. In addition, it describes the availability and ownership of land, buildings and tools, and the distribution of goods in a society. The form of society thus describes the socio-economic conditions that prevail in a society.
The concept of the form of society is strongly influenced by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels and is intended to show how the development of the mode of production throughout history has determined the development of the social structure.
Antiquity and slave-owning society
The term slave-owning society, coined by Karl Marx, describes a society in which wealth was created by slaves. This form of society was predominant in ancient times, although slavery continued to exist in later periods.
In this form of society, society consisted of free people and slaves. Free people could be citizens with full rights to property and elections, but they could also be free people whose rights were restricted. For example, immigrants in the Greek city-states, the polis, could not acquire land and were not eligible to vote.
Feudalism
In feudalism, large parts of the land belonged to the supreme ruler, usually the king. He granted the land to subordinates called vassals. The vassals then granted the land to their own vassals or, at the lowest level, to peasants. The peasants, who were granted the land to cultivate, were obliged to provide services and pay taxes to their feudal lord. They were also obliged to perform military service and were often unable to leave the land freely. The peasants were thus serfs of their feudal lords.
Feudalism was widespread in Europe, parts of the Arab world, Japan and among South American peoples.
Capitalism
The core of capitalism is an economy based on the accumulation of capital. To this end, wealthy individuals establish companies in which the majority of the population works on the basis of an employment contract and is remunerated for their work. In this system, society consists of free citizens with equal rights for all. However, large sections of the population are dependent on the owners of the companies. In this society, there is a rich upper class, a wealthy middle class and a poor lower class.
Socialism
Socialism is an intermediate form between capitalism and communism. In socialism, property rights exist, allowing individuals to accumulate greater wealth. However, there is also a redistribution of resources, which are taken from the rich and given to the poor.
Socialism is a term that encompasses many forms of a social state. These range from dictatorial socialism and democratic socialism to Christian socialism and Jewish socialism to Marxism and National Socialism.
Communism
Communism refers to a form of society in which all citizens are provided for equally and share in the resources of the population. There are no longer any social classes and property rights are abolished. Depending on one's point of view, communism is followed by the abolition of states, or the dissolution of states is a prerequisite for communism.
