The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-10-16
BY A. v. LUNAcHARsKY

interpreted. Il Is complicated. Here even more
than the sphere OF art each step does not OBJ
viate the preceding but the contrary includes
it IN broader SYSTEM. Here we are not dealing with
the stages Of the complete expression Of socialism,
The First stage. zesasst stsar
In the nrst stage the socaled social question Is con-
sidered as question the inequality Of man, not bio
logical but legal and economic inequality One is tor
mented by the consciousness the profound injustice
OF the fact chat at one social pole Is found wellbeing
and superuty and at the other miserable oppressive
poverty.
The privileged gave birth to the idea Of phanthrO-
pic socialism; the stepchdren OF societyto the So
cialsm which Enges called that communism which is
founded solely on the demand for equality" and of
which Kautsy said that 1T Is vulgar and naive' it was
created not by social farsghtedness not by altruisc
thinking and feeling but by urgent material needs the
struggle Of class interests"
| Philanthropc socialism, the socialism OF sympathy
for the suferings OF the people, ouved its time
and has not only become useless but IN many cases.
harmful Ant has frequently enlisted in the service OF
socialism. but in doing, has seldom raised itself %
broad and exalted conceptions 1t remained didactic.
shedding tears and expressing indignation like edi
toria in an honest newspaper
The struggle for economic interests sanctifed by the
idea OF equality Is the concrete foundation
of the entire socialist Other artists have
approached It and described it with understanding
and with more profound sympathy But they did not
raise themselves the highest level Of art remaining
ON level OF naturalistc understanding. The ARTISTS
exhausted themselves portrayng the misery, the need
and the proletarian but they were afraid to
understand his enthusiasm, ashamed to introduce
romancism" into the sober portrayal of his struggles
An artist not proletarian, will hardly succeed in ere
ating masterpiece while standing this naturahstc
level Nevertheless cannot fail to hail the gifted
attempts OF such writer's as Mirabeau, Deagrazia'
Youshksvitcn and especially Cork
The second Stage
HHHE great French Revolution the first to pro
claim with such force the right Of equality for every
being The thirst Tor freedom in the relations between
people-hat is principal moral nerve Of the end OF
the esehteenth and tine entire nineteenth centuries
But it turned out-and the courageous people, who
had no fear OF delYng the matter had perceived
it very early-hat political and spiritual enamel
patton neither adequate concTetey possible with
out the economic emancipation Of man. The capaiistc
dream achieving such freedom on the basis OF the
division Of property among ALL Of founding kingdom
Of equal independent citizen-owners-this dream has
disappeared And then socialism came forward as
lawful continuator Of the emancipation tendencies of
the revolution: set itself the task Of organizing col
1ecttTe Ownership for the complete emancipation of
man.
Art Is easily carried away by ideas OF freedom be-
cause Vanes freedom to such an extent as does
the artist The Qualification Of freedom often full of
enthusiasm led to the creation Of great works But
the artists have seldom expounded the idea OF the
necessity Of insttuting the collective human property
as the sole basis upon which It is possible to erect the
structure OF freedom The novels OF Bellamy and even
Of Morris several Of the last works of the unique
and gifted Welt seems to me, leave the reader cold
| Thy are too much social treatise and too little art
work; but the worst is that the whole stormy striving
after freedom be coIled on with tho question asked
by zarathustra: You tell am free, free. But
for what are you free, my brcther1"
Freedom cannot be end In itself. As such, It
msreIy appears to the slave. II tho goal OF socialism
Is freedom then what is tho goal Of freedom7 I'm
thusiasm empty freedom" which has lately ac-
qured new strength and. IN addition has been spoiled
by an unpalaabe mysticism, "a the enthusiasm Of the
heot and hs cripple the who Is Smothered and