The producers news., 1927-11-11
ELEMENTS OF POLITICAL EDU-
CATION
Continued from last week.
CHAPTER V.

The Development of Economic Forms
1. WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THE FIRST
STAGES OF EXISTENCE OF HUMAN So
CIETY?
1t is now considered established that in the first
stages of its existence human society differed very
little in its activity from the surrounding animal
world. This activity was directed toward the
struggle for existence. In this struggle men act
in two directions: on the one hand, even at very
early stage they already form social groups; and
on the other hand, they develop the use of imple-
ments, reinforcing and making more adaptable
their organs Ga stone increases the force of
blow, stick serves to lengthen an arm, ETC. But
if at the very earliest stage of their existence men
differ very little from the animal world, the use
of implements in the struggle Tor existence dis
tinguishes human society very sharply from the
animals. The animal becomes adapated to the en-
vironment in which it lives by changing its or
gans, progress in the vegetable and animal world
expressing itself in the perfection of natural or
gans. But this process of perfection goes on ex-
ceedngly slowly, the animal world being distng-
uished by its firm adherence to stages of perfec-
tion once-reached.
The development Of human society takes place
altogether differently. The natural organs of Man
perfect themselves very little; in many thousands
Of years, arms, legs, eyes, and other organs have
changed very insgnificantly, and hardly in the d-
Tection of greater perfection But the development
of Mans artificial organs-his implements takes
place at g given stage of civilization with extra
ordinary speed. A stick in the hand of a man is
an artificial organ, which serves as it were, as
an extension of the natural organ-the arm-a
technical complement of it. It is clear that all
other implements also-hammer and axes, drills
and saws knives and chisels rakes and pitchforks,
pincers and levers, steam engines and weaving
looms, telephones and telegraphs, dynamos and
mlcroscopes-all these are an increasingly complex
system Of implements which serve to substitute and
reinforce Mans natural organs in work. And it
is the use of these implements, beginning from
sticks and stones and going right up to radio-sta-
tions, that has placed the whole development Of
human society on a completely unique basis. The
animal is a slave to Nature. Man is her master.
What is it that has made Man the master, that has
raised him high above the animal world? lmple-
ments, engineering-th is what has brought him
to mastery over animate and inamiate nature.
In the first stages Of existence of human society,
the use of implements did not play an important
role since Man obtained his food in the form which
nature provided and his requirements were small
But even these limited demands and also the re-
quirements of selfdefense against the surrounding
plunderers, Man could satisfy only by means OF co
operation, only in society, through which channel
/ M whole economic activity flowed
Ihus, already in the first stages of its existence
human society bound up with labOring, econ
Omlc activity and the struggle for existence ana
this community of labOring activity generated those
powerful social feelings which have served as tne
source of the greatest achievements of human So
ciety.