Relevance of Marxism in present time:
(i) Marxism, both as a philosophy and also as a practice, has attained a position unparallelled in social and political thought. Its appeal crosses all boundaries and in fact, all limits. Its adversaries are as much convinced of its strength as are its admirers. And yet its shortcomings are obvious.
(ii) Changes do not occur simply because of the classes between the opposing classes. History is indebted to class co-operation as well for its development. Material factor, though important and dominating it may be, is not the sole factor in explaining the whole complex of society's intricacies.
(iii) Indeed, man does not live by bread alone, but it is also true that he cannot live without it. Marxism has underestimated the worth and strength of national/patriotic sentiments.
To say that the workers have no fatherland of their own, as Marx used to say, is to make them parentless. Marxism also underestimated the importance of the state.
(iv) To say that the state is a class institution and therefore, an oppressive and exploitative one is to oversimplify things.
(v) The Marxian formulations, in practice, have been really disappointing. Marxism, as a practice, has failed, whatever be the reasons. One chief reason has been its centralizing tendency: the dictatorship of the proletariat becomes the dictatorship of the communist party, the party's dictatorship becomes, ultimately, the dictatorship of one man-be that a Stallion or a Mao.
(vi) In the Soviet Union, reform movement (Glasnost, especially) initiated by Mikhail Gorbachev marked the beginning of the end of the communist movement not only in Europe but almost all over the world.
(vii) The communist China has introduced numerous liberalization measures in its economy and polity. The relevance of Marxism as an alternative ideology before the world is no more unquestioned.
