The producers news., 1927-12-30
ELEMENTS OF POLITICAL EDU-
CATION
ELEMENTS OF POLITICAL EDUCATION
.. WHY AND IN WHAT WAY DID THE TRI
BAL COMMUNE BREAK UP AND PERISH;
CONTINUED from last week.

.. WHY AND IN WHAT WAY DID THE TRI-
BAL COMMUNE BREAK UP AND PERISH?
The essential conditions of existence of the tri-
bal communal life were the undeveloped produc-
ton, the sparse population over a great area and
the complete subjection of Man to his natural en-
vironment. With the change of these conditions
the limits of communal life became narrow; they
became an obstacle to the further development Of
society," and tribal life had to disappear
Already an improvement in the method of acqui-
sition of food leads to change in productive rela-
tionships in the tribal commune If in earlier
times, uniformity in the processes of labor was
the rule, now, according as the tribe increases,
economic activity becomes more variegated and
evokes division of labor. Together with the d-
vision of labor there occurs also a gradual divorce
of the special organizing functions from the d-
rectly productive ones. This organizing role of the
chief OF the tribe becomes more essential and in
fluentlal In connection with the growing complex-
Cy OF productions with the transition to cattle-ras-
ing and settled agriculture. The establishment Of
the right OF the children to inherit the property of
Cheir fathers leads to the fact that wealth begins
TO accumulate in different families and their i'm
portance grows at the expense of the rest of the
TRIBE Of course, the organizer-the chief Of the
trloe approprlates portion of the growing wealth
OF the commune. An inequality is created within
The tribal commune, and of course this inequality
does not remain without influence on the social
system OF the commune; it marks the beginning of
the formation of classes: owners and slaves rich
and poor.
Slavery in this period is limited to military cap
tives, but there are already signs that it will not
stop here. And sure enough, the former wars be-
tween tribes give way to systematic raids for the
acquisition of cattle, slaves, and various riches
The acquisitions are considered legal property The
tribal commune, which has still preserved some
tradition of It's communist past cannot serve with
the united members of the tribe as a firm defence
against this robbery and abuse of the tribal order
1here appears on the basis of developing property,
demand for the creation of an institution which
should have sufficient respect for private property,
and should act as its defender and sanctify with
law the new, developing, forms of robbery-the
appropriation of property. An institution would
be necessary which would strengthen the embry-
onlc division into classes, which would protect the
exploitation of the poor by the rich, and would
establish the rule of the rich. And such an insti-
tuition was found. The state was formed
6. HOW DID SLAVERY ARISE?
AS we have already mentioned at a certain
stage of development of tribal communal economy.
the pastoral tribes separated from the other tribes
winch were engaged in hunting, fishing and agri-
culture, and this separation marked the first i'm
portant division of labor between societies The
nerds OF the pastoral tribes comprised a form of
wealth. which, multiplying easily with very little
expenditure OF labor, gave not only an abundance
Oh milk and meat, but also incidental products
llues' wool, hair, from which they began to make
various kinds of goods. The division of labcr
brought with it a regular exchange of products
between the different tribes
The increasing productivity of catte-raising.
agriculture, and hOmecrafts made possible guam
tty OF products that surpassed the social require
ments. AT the same time the amount of labor in
creased that was required from each member of
the tribe or separate family. Labor power, in the
form OF military captives, which had previously
mad no price and had therefore been annihilated
now acquired labor value in the ewes of the
commune, and the communes began to trv to ac-
qulre 1t. Wars, which were unremittino at tbis
period, constituted that source from which military
captlves were obtained who were made into slaves
working IN the economy of the commune and the
separate families, exclusively for their mainten-
ance.
Thus, the first important division of labor be-
tween societies-into catte-raising and agricutur-
al-lncreasing the productivity of labor, and con-
sequenty wealth also, under the prevailing histori
cal conditions, unavodably leads to the establish
ment of slavery. From the first important social
division of labor there results the first split of
society into classes: Masters and slaves expOiters
and exploited. Arising under conditions of tribal
life, slavery breaks up the cIOsed-in system of
cOmmunal-trIbal economy and life and marks the
beginning OF the formation of the new slavehOld-
ing society.
Most flappers look on the bright side of things