Socialist rhetoric

As socialist rhetoric of the political was parlance refers to the to about 1988, the official rhetoric in the socialist countries of Eastern Europe ( Eastern bloc dominated). It began with Karl Marx and his dialectic, became a defining feature of political education through Lenin in the Soviet Union and, via the GDR, also influenced some of the expressions in German that still exist today.

In the course of the glasnost policy developed by the CPSU party leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1986 , which led to greater transparency in governance towards the population in the Soviet Union, the socialist rhetoric in Russia and the other states of the Eastern Bloc lost its importance. In the GDR it was retained until the political change in 1989.

Inside and outside view

From an internal point of view, the socialist rhetoric serves to build up real socialism or communism . It interprets the political situation in the sense of Marxism, supports the arguments of its representatives and strengthens their powers of persuasion.

For training in socialist rhetoric, party universities published special books, in East Germany especially Eduard Kurka : Talk effectively - convince better. Introduction to socialist rhetoric , Dietz Verlag, 1970.

A major role in the political discourse also plays a legitimation by referring to history, where positive and negative examples of political action can be identified.

From the outside perspective, particularities of language are particularly striking:

Regular mention of socio-political expressions such as “working population”, “ working class ” or “class enemies”, “cadre”, “ collective ” etc.
argumentative reference to resolutions of the CP party congresses or central committees
great importance of planned economy specifications, z. B. as a five-year plan
flowery description of merits ( hero of work , patriotic order of merit , ...), but also personality cult (see also de-Stalinization ), "anti-Soviet agitation"
frequent use of Marxist words such as proletariat , exploitation, imperialism, bourgeoisie , revolution and counterrevolution, anti-fascism , Leninism, interests of the people, collectivization, new economic policy
Development aspects, e.g. B. “the socialist order”, state security, science, socialist realism , productivity, the planned economy and its superiority, bumper crops, friendship treaties, etc.
Objectives such as internationality, détente, pacifism, peaceful coexistence of the systems
In economic policy, emphasis on terms such as production, heavy industry, works committees, operational reporting, centralization ...
Rejection or contempt for religious world views , development of “collective memory”, frequent demand for self-criticism

Examples

From Marx and Lenin to Stalin

"All surplus value, in which particular form of profit, interest, rent, etc. it later crystallizes, is its substance according to the material nature of unpaid working time." Karl Marx 1867 Das Kapital , I / 16
“Between the capitalist and the communist society lies the period of the revolutionary transformation of one into the other. This also corresponds to a political transition period, the state of which cannot be anything other than the revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat. ”Karl Marx Critique of the Gotha Program , MEW 19/28
"The further development, i. H. the development towards communism goes beyond the dictatorship of the proletariat and cannot go any other way, because apart from the proletariat no one is able to break the resistance of the capitalist exploiters. ” Lenin , state and revolution
“Self-criticism, ruthless, cruel self-criticism that goes to the bottom of things is the air and light of life of the proletarian movement.” Rosa Luxemburg 1916
"The dictatorship of the proletariat can only be realized and maintained with a lively and active proportion of women of the working class." Clara Zetkin (SPD / KPD) around 1920
“There can be no revolution without radical changes in education.” HG Wells , Conversation with Stalin , July 1934
“There is a dogmatic Marxism and a creative Marxism. I stand on the floor of the latter. ”From Josef Wissarionowitsch Stalin - Brief biography. Moscow 1947

Soviet Union

Khrushchev 1956 on the XX. Party congress of the CPSU ( secret speech on de-Stalinization):

“The socialist revolution achieved the working class in alliance with the poor peasantry, it was carried out by the people under the leadership of the Bolshevik Party. Lenin's great merit is due to the fact that he created a fighting party of the working class, equipped it with the Marxist understanding of the laws of social development, with the doctrine of the victory of the proletariat in the struggle against capitalism [...] The party consistently defended the interests of the people his experienced leader. […] Enjoyed! In order not to repeat the mistakes of the past, the Central Committee resolutely opposes the cult of personality . We think that Stalin was singled out above all standards. Stalin undoubtedly had great merits in the past to the party, the working class and the international workers movement. […] He viewed all of this from the position of defending the interests of the working class, the interests of the working people, the interests of the victory of socialism and communism. That is where the real tragedy lies! "

Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1969–1978) on the subject of censorship :

“The Constitution of the USSR guarantees the citizens freedom of the press in accordance with the interests of the people and for the consolidation and development of the socialist order. State control is established so that the publication of information that constitutes state secrets and its dissemination in the mass media does not harm the interests of the working people. "

Germany

Walter Ulbricht 1954:

“The political and economic conditions of the working class as well as [...] of the majority of the working people are so well developed that the building of socialism has become a fundamental task in the German Democratic Republic. [...] The construction of socialism requires:

a) Carrying out the basic tasks of people's power: to break enemy resistance and to render enemy agents harmless; to protect the homeland and the work of socialist construction by organizing armed forces [...]

d) The agricultural workers and working peasants, who form production cooperatives on a completely voluntary basis, are to be given the necessary help and at the same time strengthening the alliance of the working class with the working peasants. "

Sahra Wagenknecht (PDS) 2005:

“To be a Marxist means to try to understand society in terms of its economic foundations. It also means not to accept this capitalism and to consider a socialist alternative to be possible. "

- Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, January 23, 2005

literature

Eduard Kurka: Speak effectively, convince better: an introduction to socialist rhetoric. Edited by the Karl Marx party college at the SED Central Committee. Dietz Verlag, Berlin 1970, DNB 457246111 .
Detlef Grieswelle: Political rhetoric: power of speech, public legitimation, foundation of consensus. Deutscher Universitäts-Verlag, Wiesbaden, 2000, ISBN 978-3-8244-4389-5 (reading samples) .
Ulla Fix, Andreas Gardt, Joachim Knape (eds.): Rhetoric and stylistics. An international handbook of historical and systematic research , 2nd half volume. Mouton de Gruyter, Berlin / New York 2009, ISBN 978-3-11-017857-9 (reading samples) .

Individual evidence

^ Toast Erich Honecker on October 7, 1989 (one month before the fall of the Berlin Wall): "To international solidarity, to the peace and happiness of all peoples, to the 40th anniversary of our German Democratic Republic!"
↑ Speech by the First Secretary of the CK of the KPSS, NS Chruščev on the XX. Party congress of the KPSS ["secret speech"] and the decision of the party congress "On the personality cult and its consequences", February 25, 1956. In: 1000dokumente.de . Retrieved June 20, 2020 .
↑ Gerald Braunberger: This is the communist speaking: Sahra Wagenknecht about her alternatives to cold capitalism. In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung . January 23, 2005, accessed on June 20, 2020 (reproduced on sahra-wagenknecht.de).

[1] Toast Erich Honecker on October 7, 1989 (one month before the fall of the Berlin Wall): "To international solidarity, to the peace and happiness of all peoples, to the 40th anniversary of our German Democratic Republic!"

[2] Speech by the First Secretary of the CK of the KPSS, NS Chruščev on the XX. Party congress of the KPSS ["secret speech"] and the decision of the party congress "On the personality cult and its consequences", February 25, 1956. In: 1000dokumente.de . Retrieved June 20, 2020 .

[3] Gerald Braunberger: This is the communist speaking: Sahra Wagenknecht about her alternatives to cold capitalism. In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung . January 23, 2005, accessed on June 20, 2020 (reproduced on sahra-wagenknecht.de).