Communism and Marxism are different. Communism is a striving and goal for society. Marxism is a social science which describes why society transitions from one mode of production to the next. Marxism is also a philosophy based on materialism and dialectics. Nor are communism and socialism the same. The socialist countries of the 20th century were not communist, although state power was held by ideological communists. Soviet socialism was an industrial economy where bourgeois private property was abolished in everything fundamental to industrial production. For Marxists, socialism is an economic system between capitalism and communism.
(See, Socialism.)
Find Marxist Glossary 3.0 on MARS website at Marxist Glossary for the 21st Century page.
Also available on the Marxist Glossary Discussion group Facebook page. It can be downloaded from the files.
