In the same way that conservatism was a reaction to liberalism, socialism was a response to the problems caused by industrial capitalism. Socialists divide society into classes of people based on how many resources and opportunities they have, and the kinds of jobs that they do. Early socialists saw that large factories and the people who owned them (the capitalist class) were a danger to the working class. A capitalist is someone who owns something (e.g., money, property, or land) and uses it to make money. For example, if someone owns a building, they can make money by renting the rooms to other people. This kind of property is called “capital”. The “working class” are the people in society who do not own any capital. The only way they can make money is by working for other people. The early socialists suggested a different system. In their system, everyone would own the factories, farms, and shops. They claimed that this would create a more equal society.

At the end of the nineteenth century, socialists divided into two different groups. Some decided that changing the whole economic system would be very difficult. They said it would be better for socialists to try to improve the wages and working conditions of workers. In this way, they could have a better place in capitalist society. They decided that the best way to do this was to try to get the government to make laws that protected workers’ rights. These were called reformist socialists. The other group continued to demand a new economic system where all of the means of production (factories, farms, workshops, etc.) were owned and controlled by a government made of workers. This group was called communists.

Important Values in socialism

Solidarity

Many socialists think that it is natural for people to care for and make sacrifices for each other. Even though people are different (gender, race, class, etc.), oppressed and marginalised people everywhere are connected because they are all oppressed. Socialists argue that supporting others who are in need or oppressed is an important part of solidarity.

Equality of outcome

In the same way that liberals think that liberty is the most important value in politics, socialists believe that equality is the most important value. They want to make a society based on social equality (equality of outcome) not only equality of opportunity. This is controversial because it means that socialist governments need to take resources from wealthy individuals and businesses to give them to poorer groups. Many non-socialists claim that this is an abuse of individual rights and bad for the economy.

Social Need

Because socialists want a society based on equality, they say that resources should be given to people based on how much they need. They say that it is the responsibility of strong and healthy people to take care of the weak and sick (who cannot work to earn a living).

Public Ownership

Unlike liberals and conservatives (who support individual ownership of property) many socialists support public ownership of property. They say that the means of production should belong to everyone so that the goods and resources that come from them can be distributed equally in society. However, socialists disagree about how much this should happen.