1. One part of them negate property for our future; these teachings may
be characterized as _indoministic_. The other part affirm it for our
future; these teachings may be called _doministic_. Indoministic are the
teachings of Godwin, Proudhon, Stirner, and Tolstoi; doministic the
teachings of Bakunin, Kropotkin, and Tucker.
There cannot be given a more precise definition of what is common to the
indoministic teachings on the one hand and to the doministic on the
other, and what is peculiar to the one group as against the other, than
has here been given. For both the affirmation and the negation of
property for our future have totally different meanings in the different
teachings.
In the cases of Godwin, Stirner, and Proudhon, the negation of property
for our future means that they reject property unconditionally, and so
for our future as well as elsewhere: Godwin because it is always and
everywhere contrary to the general happiness, Stirner because it is
always and everywhere contrary to the individual's happiness, Proudhon
because it always and everywhere offends against justice.
In Tolstoi's case the meaning of the negation of property for our future
is that he rejects property, though not absolutely, yet for our future,
because it is, though not at all times and in all places, yet under our
circumstances, in a higher degree repugnant to love than is its
non-existence.
In Tucker's case the affirmation of property for our future means that
he approves property as such (though certainly not every particular form
of property) unconditionally, and hence for our future as well as
elsewhere, because property as such is never and nowhere contrary to the
individual's happiness.[1168]
Finally, in the cases of Bakunin and Kropotkin the affirmation of
property for our future is as much as to say that they foresee that in
our future the progress of evolution will leave in existence property as
such, even though not the present particular form of property: Bakunin
meaning mankind's progress from a less perfect existence to one as
perfect as possible, Kropotkin its progress from a less happy existence
to one as happy as possible.
2. The indoministic teachings part company again as to what they affirm
for our future (in the same different senses in which they negate
property for our future) in contrast to property.
According to Proudhon, a distribution of goods determined by a voluntary
legal relation, and based on the legal norm that contracts ought to be
lived up to, ought to take the place of property.
According to Godwin, Stirner, and Tolstoi, the place of property ought
to be taken by a distribution without any legal relation, based rather
on the same rule of action that is affirmed by them in contrast to law.
According to Godwin, therefore, that distribution of goods which is to
take the place of property ought to be based on what is prescribed to
each one by the general happiness.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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