The Naked Communist

The Communist Philosophy of Nature

To begin with, the basic Communist idea is that everything in existence can be explained by one thing— matter. Beyond matter there is nothing. Matter is the total explanation for atoms, solar systems, plants, animals, man, psychic consciousness, human intelligence and all other aspects of life. Communist philosophy maintains that if science can get to know all there is to know about matter, we will then know all there is to know about everything.^{9} Communism has therefore assigned to science the monumental task of making man totally omniscient—of knowing all truth—but has limited the investigation to one reality—matter. Matter is conclusively accepted as the beginning and the end of all reality.

Communist philosophy then sets forth to answer three questions:

• What is the origin of energy or motion in nature?

• What causes galaxies, solar systems, planets, animals and all kingdoms of nature to constantly increase their numerical quantity?

• What is the origin of life, the origin of species and the origin of consciousness and mind?

Marx and Engels answered all of these questions with their three laws of matter:

The Law of Opposites—Marx and Engels started with the observation that everything in existence is a combination or unity of opposites.^{10} Electricity is characterized by a positive and negative charge. Atoms consist of protons and electrons which are unified but contradictory forces. Each organic body has qualities of attraction and repulsion. Even human beings find through introspection that they are a unity of opposite qualities—selfishness and altruism, courage and cowardice, social traits and anti-social traits, humbleness and pride, masculinity and femininity. The Communist conclusion is that everything in existence “contains two mutually incompatible and exclusive but nevertheless equally essential and indispensable parts or aspects.”^{11}

Now the Communist concept is that this unity of opposites in nature is the thing which makes each entity auto-dynamic and provides the constant motivation for movement and change. This idea was borrowed from Georg Wilhelm Hegel (1770–1831) who said: “Contradiction (in nature) is the root of all motion and of all life.”^{12}

This, then, introduces us to the first basic observation of Communist dialectics. The word “dialectics” has a very special meaning to Communists. It represents the idea of conflict in nature. The beginning student of Communist philosophy can better understand the meaning of dialectics if he substitutes the word “conflict” each time “dialectics” appears.

So at this point the student is expected to understand that each thing in the universe is in a state of motion because it is a parcel made up of opposite forces which are struggling within it. This brings us to the second law of matter.

The Law of Negation—Having accounted for the origin of motion and energy in the universe, the Communist writers then set about to account for the tendency in nature to constantly increase the numerical quantity of all things. They decided that each entity tends to negate itself in order to reproduce itself in greater quantity. Engels cited the case of the barley seed which, in its natural state, germinates and out of its own death or negation produces a plant. The plant in turn grows to maturity and is itself negated after bearing many barley seeds. Thus, all nature is constantly expanding through dying. The elements of opposition which produce conflict in each thing and give it motion also tend to negate the thing itself; but out of this dynamic process of dying the energy is released to expand and produce many more entities of the same kind.^{13}

Having accounted for numerical increase in the universe, the Communist philosophers then set about to account for all the different creations in nature.

The Law of Transformation—This law states that a continuous quantitative development by a particular class often results in a “leap” in nature whereby a completely new form or entity is produced.^{14} Consider, for example, the case of the paraffin hydrocarbons:

“Chemistry testifies to the fact that methane is composed of one atom of carbon and four atoms of hydrogen. Now, if we add to methane another atom of carbon and two more atoms of hydrogen (a mere quantitative increase since these are the elements already composing the methane) we get an entirely new chemical substance called ethane. If we add another atom of carbon and two more atoms of hydrogen to the ethane, we get propane, an entirely different chemical substance. Another quantitative addition of an atom of carbon and two atoms of hydrogen results in a fourth chemical substance, butane. And still another quantitative addition of an atom of carbon and two more atoms of hydrogen results in a fifth chemical substance, pentane.”^{15}

The Marxist philosophers immediately concluded that this is the clue to the “Creative Power” in nature. Matter is not only auto-dynamic and inclined to increase itself numerically, but through quantitative accumulations it is also inherently capable of “leaps” to new forms and new levels of reality.

Marx and Engels now felt they had not only found an explanation for the “origin of species,” but that they had discovered a thrilling explanation for the greatest mystery of all: What is Life?

The Origin of Life, Consciousness and Mind

On the basis of this principle the Communist philosophers decided that the phenomenon of life was the product of one of these leaps. Engels stated that the complex chemical structure of matter evolved until albuminous substance was formed, and from this albuminous substance life emerged. In fact, he insisted that just as you cannot have matter without motion, so also you cannot have albumin without life. It is an inherent characteristic of albumin—a higher form of motion in nature.^{16}

Engels also suggested that as soon as life emerged spontaneously from albuminous substance, it was bound to increase in complexity. Dialectical Materialism is an evolutionary philosophy. However, the Communist does not believe that new forms in nature are the result of gradual change but that quantitative multiplication builds up the momentum for a “leap” in nature which produces a change or a new specie.

The Communist believes that incidental to one of these leaps, the phenomenon of consciousness emerged. The creature became aware of the forces which were playing upon it. Then at an even higher level another form of life appeared with the emerging capacity to work with these impressions—to arrange them in associations—and thus mind emerged as an intelligent, self-knowing, self-determining quality in matter. However, matter is primary, mind is secondary. Where there is no matter there is no mind—therefore, there can be no soul, no immortality, no God.

With the setting down of the Law of Transformation the Communist philosophy of nature became complete. The Dialectical Materialists felt that a great intellectual contribution had been made to man’s understanding of the universe. Through these laws they decided they had shown:

1. Matter is a unity of opposites which creates a conflict that makes it auto-dynamic and self-energizing; therefore matter does not need an outside source of power for its manifestation of motion;

2. Through its pattern of constant negation or dying, nature tends to multiply itself and fill the universe with an orderly development or increase without requiring any guiding intelligence; and

3. Through the Law of Transformation matter is capable of producing new forms without the need of any creative or directing power outside of itself.

Engels boasted that by discovery of these laws “the last vestige of a Creator external to the world is obliterated.”^{17}

From this brief summary, it will be seen that the Communist intellectual believes that everything in