Marx's Theory Of Social Organism New Exploration

Marx's social organism theory is an important intermediary theory of"explaining and developing"historical materialism as his"social construction theory"does. The theoretical circle, however, has not attached importance to the latter as much as the former, and not recognized its important role of elaborating on historical materialism.Thoughts on social organism have a long history. Ancient Greek has simple thoughts of social organism. Middle Ages has theology social organism thoughts. Modern mechanists have also some factors of social organism thoughts. There are profound theory of social organism in Germany's classical philosophy, especially in Hegel's philosophy. Positivist's social organism theory revolts to Hegel's social organism theory.The creation of Marx's social organism theory is a historical process. Marx critically assimilates the past social organism thoughts (mainly of Hegel's social organism theory). He point out that, built up in the practice, human society is an organic whole which is composed of human being and its social living conditions and elements. This theory really revolts to Hegel's social organism thoughts. Marx also uses social organism to refute the machinicalness in the conception of society and history, and transcends Positivism's social organism theory with the view of practice. The structure of social organism theory of Marx is consistent with historical materialism."Social construction theory"emphasizes particularly on revealing the laws of social structure and development in terms of fundamentality while"Social organism theory"focuses on complete social structure and developmental course of society, which reveals the whole of society basing on social fundamental aspects.1) The nature of organism and its integrity. Social organism is a product of long-term development of natural and is a kind of existence form of unified material universe, so social history comes on as a historical process of nature. Nature is just the natural premise of birth of social organism whereas labor (practice) is the real basis of social organism to come into being. Therefore,"all social life is essentially practical."Human society which is formed and developed in practice is an organic whole in which all relations are co-existed and inter-dependent.2) The composition of social organism. Population and natural environment are the prerequisite elements; productivity, production relations and superstructure are basic elements; there are some elements which cannot be simply attributed to the above two types of elements. From the subject aspects, social organism is composed of different crowd communities that are formed in practice. From object ones, it is made up of economic, political and cultural structures of society. To understand economic structure and cultural structure of society in a narrow sense and broad sense is helpful to revealing the whole of social structure.3) The development of social organism. The contradictory movements of productivity and productive relation, economic base and superstructure, productivity and the superstructure constitute laws of development of social organism."Joint efforts theory"fully sums up the impetus of development of social organism, including the fundamental driving force of social basic contradictions, the ultimate driving force of productivity, the direct driving force of class struggle and the motive force of social subject. The developmental process of social organism shows the basic pictures of social reproduction, human's development, social practice and social form.4) The form of social organism. Social organism and social form is the relationship between general and individual. social form and economic form of society the relationship between whole and part. Social form consists of economic, political and cultural forms. Socio-economic form just is the skeletal system of social form.The development of social form is the organic unity of big social forms and small social forms. Primitive society is composed of blood family society (quasi-social state), matriarchal clan society and patrilineal clan society; private property society comprises slave society, feudal society and capitalist society; communist society consists of socialism and communism.Marx's social organism theory fully reveals the general rules of structure and development of social organism. It lays the foundations of methodology for the people's social practice and recognition of society. So it has the important significance of theory and practice. In theory, it is an important medium theory to"explain and develop"historical materialism, a theoretical tool of opening up new areas of research of historical materialism, and a solid theoretical basis of advancing the modernization of thinking. In practice, it is the theoretical guidance of practicing the scientific concept of development and building a harmonious society.