p With the completion of socialist construction in the Soviet Union, the class composition of Soviet society radically changed. Private ownership of the means of production and the exploitation of man by man were abolished for ever. The exploiting classes disappeared both in town and country.

p There remained two friendly classes, the working class and the collective-farm peasantry, plus the working intelligentsia all of which basically changed in Soviet times.

p The working class was no longer the proletariat which had been exploited and deprived of all rights under capitalism. Together with all the other people, it owns the means of production and is the true master of the country. The working class has grown numerically since the establishment of Soviet power: in 1978, it totalled 75.7 million people, compared with 9.8 million in 1913, 23.7 million in 1940 and 64.3 million in 1970. Its cultural, technical and educational standards have risen greatly and so has its political activity. Being the main productive force of the society and its most revolutionary, disciplined, organised and conscious class the working class in developed socialist society holds the leading place in the social structure, in the entire system of social relations.

p The collectivisation of agriculture and the cultural revolution changed the position of the Soviet peasants beyond 258 recognition. From a disunited, downtrodden class, exploited by the landlords and kulaks, the peasants became a genuinely free class.

p Collective labour for the benefit of the country brought the peasant out of his age-old isolation, helped him overcome his private-owner psychology and fostered a spirit of collectivism, friendship and cooperation in him. Its culture and technical knowledge grew immensely. The extensive use of modern machinery necessitated the training of large contingents of farm-machine operators whose labour differs little from that of the workers.

p The intelligentsia too has changed greatly. The Soviet intelligentsia, the majority of whom come from the ranks of the working class and the peasants, is inseparable from the people and serves them loyally and selflessly. The ranks of the intelligentsia, particularly technical and scientific, are swelling rapidly as a result of the growth and improvement of production, and progress in science, technology and culture. In 1978 alone, the national economy received 1,999,000 specialists, of whom 771,500 had a higher education and 1,228,400 a specialised secondary education.

p Class relations, of domination and subordination have been abolished for ever in the Soviet Union; there are no privileged classes or groups in it and all members of society have an equal relation to the means of production; therefore exploitation, the appropriation of someone else’s labour is impossible. Each has an income that depends on the amount of work he puts in, and not on capital invested.

p Since there are no exploiters and exploited but only working classes and social groups in socialist society, there is no class struggle. A solid alliance of the working class, the collective-farm peasantry and the people’s intelligentsia has been formed.

p The social, political and ideological unity of the Soviet people has been formed in socialist society. This unity has its source in the community of the basic economic and political aims of the working class, the peasants and the intelligentsia, in their unanimous striving to build communist society which will bring them the greatest material and cultural benefits. This community of interests enables the Soviet people to act together, harmoniously, in order to 259 overcome by concerted effort thd hardest trials and to accomplish tasks of great historic importance. The strength of millions of people, bound by their community of interests, welded together by unity of action and inspired by the mighty ideas of communism, constitutes a great, indestructible force.

The class composition of Soviet society is mobile: it is moving from class differentiation towards social homogeneity, and class distinctions are being overcome.