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Socialist state

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	Topics Socialist state Topic Home The term socialist state (or socialist republic, or workers' state) can carry one of several different (but related) meanings: In strictly speaking, any real or hypothetical state organized along the principles of socialismSocialism Socialism refers to a broad array of doctrines or political movements that envisage a socio-economic system in which propert... may be called a socialist state. The term socialist republic is used by those socialists who wish to emphasize that they favour a republicRepublic In a broad definition, a republic is a state or country that is led by people whose political power is based on principles t... an form of government. Furthermore, since socialism purports to represent the interests of the working classWorking class Working class is a term used both in academic sociology as well as in ordinary conversation.... , many socialists refer to a state organized according to their principles as a workers' state. According to MarxismMarxism Marxism refers to the philosophy and social theory based on Karl Marx's work on one hand, and to the political practice base... , socialism is a stage of social and economic development that will replace capitalismFacts About Capitalism Capitalism is an economic system in which the means of production are owned mostly privately, and capital is invested in t... , and will in turn be replaced by communismCommunism Communism is an ideology that seeks to establish a future classless, stateless social organization, based upon common owners... . Thus, in Marxist terms, a socialist state is a state that has abolished capitalism and is moving towards communism. Several past and present states have claimed to follow some form of Marxist ideology, usually Marxism-LeninismMarxism-Leninism Marxism-Leninism , strictly speaking, refers to the version of Marxism developed by Vladimir Lenin; see Leninism.... . They referred to themselves as socialist states and since 1970s as states of real socialismReal socialism Real socialism was a term introduced by Soviet propaganda in 1970s to denote forms of government that evolved in the countri... . The first example was the Soviet UnionSoviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , more commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a Communist state that existed... , which was proclaimed a "socialist state" in its 1936 Constitution1936 Soviet Constitution The 1936 Soviet constitution, adopted on December 5, 1936, and also known as the "Stalin" constitution, redesigned the... and a subsequent 1977 one1977 Soviet Constitution At the Seventh Session of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR Ninth Convocation on October 7, 1977, the fourth and last Soviet Constit... . Another well-known example is the People's Republic of ChinaPeople's Republic of China The People's Republic of China , is a country in East Asia.... , which is a "socialist state" according to its 1982 Constitution of the People's Republic of ChinaConstitution of the People's Republic of China The Constitution of the People's Republic of China is the highest law within the People's Republic of China.... . In the West, such states are commonly known as "communist stateCommunist state A Communist state is a state which declares its allegiance to the principles of Marxism-Leninism.... s" (though they do not use this term to refer to themselves). A socialist state may be a country that uses the term "socialist" or "socialist republic" in its official name, constitution or the name or constitution of the ruling party, regardless of the actual political and economic system it has in practice. Examples include the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri LankaSri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka , is a tropical island nation off the southeast c... , the Socialist Republic of VietnamVietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, is a country in Southeast Asia.... , and the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab JamahiriyaLibya Libya , officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya , is a country in North Africa.... . Because there are several different branches of socialism, a country's claim to the label of "socialist state" or "socialist republic" is almost always disputed by some branch. Indeed, there are many socialists who strongly oppose certain (or all) self-proclaimed socialist republics. TrotskyistsTrotskyism Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky.... , for instance, are particularly known for their opposition to existing Communist states, which they do not view as adhering to communism at all, but rather to StalinismStalinism Overview Stalinism is the political and economic system named after Joseph Stalin, who implemented it in the Soviet Union.... . See also List of socialist countriesList of socialist countries This is a list of countries, past and present, that declared themselves socialist either in their names or their constitutions.... Legislatures in real socialismLegislatures in real socialism Legislatures in states practicing real socialism included:... Bureaucratic collectivismBureaucratic collectivism Bureaucratic collectivism is a theory of class society.... Communist stateCommunist state A Communist state is a state which declares its allegiance to the principles of Marxism-Leninism.... Deformed workers' stateDeformed workers' state In Trotskyist political theory, deformed workers' states are states where the bourgeoisie has been overthrown through social... Degenerated workers' stateDegenerated workers' state In Trotskyist political theory the term degenerated workers' state has been used since the 1930s to describe the state of th... Dictatorship of the proletariatDictatorship of the proletariat The "dictatorship of the proletariat" is a term employed by Karl Marx in his 1875 Critique of the Gotha Program that ref... SocialismSocialism Socialism refers to a broad array of doctrines or political movements that envisage a socio-economic system in which propert... State capitalismState capitalism State capitalism, in its classic meaning, is a private capitalist economy under state control.... State socialismState socialism State socialism, broadly speaking, is any variety of socialism which relies on ownership of the means of production by the s...