Deck 7: Democratic Socialism and Communism: Ideologies of the Left

Question 1

Who of the following is an example of a utopian socialist?

A) Robert Owen
B) Gerrard Winstanley
C) Friedrich Engels
D) Mao Zedong

Answer 1

Robert Owen

Question 2

The Cultural Revolution occurred in which country?

A) Russia
B) Vietnam
C) England
D) China

Answer 2

China

Question 3

Karl Marx wrote which of the following books?

A) Das Kapital
B) Imperialism
C) A New View of Society
D) Capitalism: An Evil System

Answer 3

Das Kapital

Question 4

The author of A New View of Society is ______.

A) Robert Owen
B) Mao Zedong
C) Eduard Bernstein
D) Josef Stalin

Question 5

Which of the following was not a source of democratic socialist thinking, according to the authors?

A) utopian thought
B) Marxism
C) Fabianism
D) anarchism

Question 6

Which of the following theorists was responsible for the idea of democratic centralism?

A) V. I. Lenin
B) Mao Zedong
C) Friedrich Engels
D) Josef Stalin

Question 7

Which of the following is not a source of Marx's thought?

A) the Enlightenment
B) French socialist thought
C) British political economy
D) Christian utopian thought

Question 8

Which of the following is not a key ideal of democratic socialist thought?

A) adherence to the main tenets of liberal democracy
B) commitment to public ownership of key aspects of the economy
C) promotion of an extensive welfare state
D) assumption of a local, national, or parochial perspective

Question 9

Which of the following was the most serious problem facing Mao Zedong as he implemented communist ideas in China?

A) the agricultural nature of China's economy
B) China's Christian heritage
C) a lack of large cities in China
D) opposition from the Soviet Union

Question 10

Which of the following is not a central aspect of democratic socialist thought?

A) the need for popular, constitutional rule
B) socialist economies
C) the need for violent revolution
D) the desire to help people socially develop their potential

Question 11

Dictatorship of the proletariat means that ______.

A) the workers rule
B) all the people rule
C) Marx rules
D) the Communist Party rules

Question 12

Democratic socialists often have the goal of achieving an economy in which there is both public and private control of industries. This is known as ______.

A) totalitarianism
B) materialism
C) Fabianism
D) a mixed economy

Question 13

Critics of liberal democracy and capitalism, from moderate socialists to traditional communists, are united in a belief in human equality, especially as it relates to social, political, and economic rights and privileges. This belief is known as ________________.

Question 14

Gorbachev's idea of glasnost and ____________ were designed to achieve something akin to communism with a human face.

Question 15

Eduard Bernstein rejected the _____________________ aspects of Marxist thought.

Question 16

In Britain, the _________________ Party is most closely associated with democratic socialism.

Question 17

According to Marx, all human history is a struggle between ____________________.

Question 18

_______________ modified communist theory by insisting on "socialism in one country."

Question 19

Mao Zedong sought to abbreviate the period of socialism in China and move rapidly toward communism with the ___________________________ in 1958.

Question 20

What are the main ideas advanced by democratic socialism? What criticisms are commonly made of this ideology? How is it defended?

Question 21

Discuss the main ideas of Karl Marx, and offer a critique of those ideas. Is Marxism still defensible today?

Question 22

Do the examples of Lenin, Stalin, and Mao mean that communism is a "lion and fox" theory of politics? Be sure to define your terms and discuss specific examples of actions by Lenin, Stalin, and Mao.

Question 23

Was Mikhail Gorbachev a great communist leader because of his reforms, or was he a failure?

Question 24

Can China continue to reform economically without reforming politically?

Question 25

Is communism an example of totalitarianism? Explain why some would suspect that. What flaws do you see in seeing communism that way?

Question 26

In what ways, if any, do the ideas of democratic socialism and communism exert any influence on the United States?

Question 27

In what ways did Gorbachev's ideas contribute to the downfall of communism in the Soviet Union?

Question 28

In what is democratic socialism an example of utopian thought? What role should utopian thought play in politics?