Marxism and the Role of the State in the Soviet and Chinese Experience

Abstract

This article reflects on the contrast between theoretical Marxism, especially its views on the state, and the actual developments in Russia and China, in which Marxist inspired revolutions created totalitarian states similar to Oriental despotism, and this became especially clear in China, where totalitarian arrangements fit well with native traditions. While Communist rule reinforced the country’s totalitarian traditions, it hardly hampered the country’s economy. Actually, the opposite happened: totalitarian China engaged in speedy progress and would most likely emerge as a global leader in the foreseeable future.