Questions what is the main features of the socialist economy?

What similarities can we see between Owen’s philosophy and that of Marx?

Key words: “Capital”, "social ideas", "New Moral World"

The term Utopian Socialism as defined in the Dictionary of Politics highlights Utopianism as “An approach to social or political theory based upon the design of a perfect society”. (Robertson, (1993) Such thinkers as Owen and St Simon dreamt of “class unity rather than the abolition of classes”. (Marx and Engels, (1848) Marx was highly critical of the belief that there could ever be such a situation that would promote class unity. Marx went on to argue that “the utopians dreamt of class unity rather than the abolition of class. The utopians are belated enlightenment idealists who think their blueprint could simply be imposed on the world”. ( Marx and Engels, (1848). 

Robert Owen in order to test his political theory purchased a huge spinning mill at New Lanarkshire. His experiences and experiments would prove to make him famous and spawn his many ideas of socialist/communal living. After becoming owner of the mill Owen became aware of the awful conditions under which many of the workers lived. The mere fact that Owen was the owner of the factory brought much scorn from the likes of Marx and Engels. Marx argued that “in the formation of their plans, they are conscious of caring chiefly for the interest of the working class, as being the most suffering class. Only from the point of view of being the most suffering class does the proletariat exist for them”

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