Mikhail Bakunin (1814-1876)

Mikhail Bakunin played a significant role in the anarchist movement of the 1800s. Bakunin believed that political power leads to oppression and trusted in human connections. He suggested that true freedom comes from collectivism, which means creating self-governing communities that work together, eliminate private property, and reward contributions fairly. He endorsed individual acts of violence, claiming that the "sacred instinct of violence" was essential for tearing down political, social, and religious systems. Bakunin also criticized Marxist ideas, particularly their reliance on the state. However, his thoughts lacked systematic consistency, often showing a mix of materialist and romantic views in his writings.

Mikhail Bakunin, like fellow anarchists Kropotkin and Leo Tolstoy, came from a minor aristocratic family in Russia. He became radicalized in his youth after exploring various philosophical ideas, which led him to become a revolutionary. Early in his life, he shared beliefs similar to those of Karl Marx. He opposed capitalism and private property, viewing both as forms of oppression. Bakunin agreed with Marxists that the state served capitalism and sought to eliminate both capitalism and the state.

In 1872, during a Socialist International meeting, Bakunin broke away from the Marxists. His main issue with Marxism was its idea of replacing the capitalist state with a workers’ state, which he believed would lead to problems. While Marxists thought this state would eventually disappear as socialism took hold, Bakunin could not accept this view. He emphasized a crucial difference between socialism and anarchism. He argued that anarchists must reject any form of state, even one that claims to benefit the working class. Bakunin held that power corrupts people, both those in government and those governed. While socialists may have good intentions with a proletarian state, he believed it would ultimately fail.

Bakunin's ideas were shaped by his experience during the Paris Commune of 1871. This event was an uprising against the French government and inspired revolutionaries. Bakunin viewed it as an anarchist movement instead of a sign of socialist awareness. He saw it as a shift from a repressive state to a communal way of living. This new society would prioritize economic equality, direct democracy, and shared ownership of property. Bakunin believed in the effectiveness of propaganda, and the Paris Commune exemplified "propaganda by deed," inspiring others despite its short-lived existence.

He argued that a fair and orderly society could exist without a government that uses force. For Bakunin, there was no conflict between maintaining order and ensuring individual freedom. In his book God and the State, he claimed that true freedom comes when people decide to follow the laws of nature voluntarily. People must make this choice freely, recognizing it as the best way to live. The laws of nature include human sociability, empathy, equality, and respect for others' freedom.

Religion reinforces state oppression. A belief in God undermines independent thought and encourages acceptance of divine authority. In turn, such religious faith serves the state by promoting ignorance and social conservatism.  Bakunin regards the church and the state as illegitimate (and interlinked) institutions of control and calls for both of them to be abolished by violence if necessary.  

Bakunin views the state as a huge slaughterhouse or cemetery. He sees it as a false authority that stifles personal freedom. He believes that the state causes economic centralization, the concentration of political power, and social control through religion. This, he argues, leads to the loss of individual liberties and the rise of an oppressive ruling class that dominates the rest of society. He also claims that the state encourages militarism and expansionism, making violence, exploitation, and injustice essential for its survival and the control of the people.

Bakunin's concept of a well-ordered society was called federalism. He believed that workers and farmers could form voluntary communities of varying sizes. In these communes, property would be collectively owned, and rewards would be shared fairly without coercion. The relationships between these communities would be based on mutual benefit, rejecting a capitalist market system that causes inequality. Instead, there would be free negotiation and exchange based on the true value of goods and services.

Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, a key figure in this movement, is famous for declaring that "property is theft" in his 1840 book, What is Property? While he is credited with coining the term "anarchist," he did not completely reject private property. He opposed property that oppressed workers or contributed to inequality. He accepted that workers and peasants could own what they needed for their production, referring to these as "possessions." Uniquely among his contemporaries, he advocated for the peaceful end of the state and even served in the French Parliament after 1848.

Summary:

We are fundamentally social animals and productive work characterises our humanity.

The state is the servant of capitalism. Both the state and capitalism must be destroyed by revolution.

There should be a federal system and the abolition of national boundaries. Federations of workers would cooperate, not compete with each other.

The market system of exchange should be abolished and replaced by exchange based on the true value of labour and goods.