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p Capitalism, which gave birth to conditions facilitating the rapid development of production, technology and natural science, replaced feudalism in a number of WestEuropean countries in the 16th-18th centuries. Factories, mills and mines dislodged the artisan workshops and the manufactories, while the energy of human muscles, of water and of wind was supplanted by the mighty energy of steam and then of electricity. Within the relatively short span of two or three centuries much more ground was covered in the development of production than in the entire preceding history of mankind. However, capitalism did not make the lot of the working man easier: exploitation remained as ruthless and inhuman as it was in slave-owning times and under feudalism, this all the more so since survivals of feudalism were still strongly entrenched and capitalist oppression was frequently supplemented with feudal oppression. This gave rise to growing dissatisfaction among the masses and the class struggle became increasingly more acute. These social changes could not but have their effect on the spiritual life of society. Socialist theories were advanced which mirrored the protest of the masses against the existing social system. Humanism—respect and concern for man—was the central idea of all these theories.

p One of the first Utopian socialists was the English statesman and philosopher Thomas More (1478-1535).

p Though capitalism was still in its infancy, he saw that it was a system of exploitation that was unable to ensure 14 a genuinely human life for the working people, that it was a “...conspiracy of rich men procuring their own commodities under the name and title of the commonwealth”. Capitalism displayed no concern whatever for tillers of the soil, miners, day-labourers, draymen and workers, without whom, More believed, no society could exist. The rich “invent and devise means and crafts ... to hire and abuse the work and labour of the poor for as little money as may be" and exploit them as though they were beasts of burden.

p Thomas More’s greatest service to progressive thinking was that in his book Utopia he drew the conclusion that equality and happiness, man’s physical and intellectual development, social justice and an intelligent conduct of social affairs were inconceivable as long as private ownership existed, as long as the wealth created by the labour of the majority fell into the hands of a few, who led an idle life.

p He advanced the profound and daring idea that private ownership had to be abolished and gave a picture of a single, democratically governed, organised society founded on collective ownership and collective labour.

p In this society, which More sited on the imaginary Island of Utopia, people were not slaves to capital; they were not oppressed by the wealthy. They laboured collectively, engaging in both physical and mental work. They did not tolerate idlers and parasites, and delivered the fruits of their labour to public storehouses, from where they received everything they needed free of charge. More came close to understanding the communist principle of distribution according to requirements, although, as interpreted by him, these requirements were extremely limited, cover ing only bare necessities.

p Due to historical reasons, his other views were similarly narrow. For instance, he made allowance for the existence of slavery—prisoners of war and criminals, who would perform the most arduous work; the Utopians had to believe in God as the creator of the world and in the immortality of the soul.

p City of the Sun was the name Tommaso Campanella (1568-1639), who was prominent in the popular liberation movement in Italy, gave the future society. As on More’s 15 Island of Utopia, there was no exploitation in the City of the Sun. The citizens were not slaves to capital. Everybody worked—the working day was only four hours long. The people devoted their leisure time to mental and physical development. Like More’s Utopians, they delivered the fruits of their labour to public storehouses from where they received everything they needed. An extremely striking point was that Campanella sought to use science to conduct the affairs of society intelligently for the purpose of ensuring social progress. The City’s ruler was a scientist with vast knowledge and long practical experience. The idea of organising society scientifically, of consciously directing social progress must be recognised as being remarkable despite its primitive nature. Like More, Campanella did not know how to set about building the new society; while turning to science he drew upon astrology.

p The theories evolved by More and Campanella, who were the first to work out a system of social organisation, which excluded private property and exploitation, played a tremendous role in the criticism of feudal ideology and influenced the subsequent development of social thinking.

Gerrard Winstanley (1609-c. 1652), spokesman of the poor, chiefly of the proletarianised peasantry during the English bourgeois revolution of the 17th century, was a brilliant advocate of Utopian socialism. In his views the nascent proletariat’s demand for the abolition of private property dovetailed with the demand of the peasants for equal rights to land. He believed that mankind could be delivered from poverty and exploitation and a new society built only after private property was abolished in town and countryside. His idea of this new society did not go beyond primitive, equalitarian communism. Moreover, many of his views wore the cloak of religion. Nonetheless, these were enlightened views inasmuch as they mirrored the basic demands of the poorest sections of English society.