Lesson Five: The Origins of Socialism

In the late 1800s, early utopian socialist thinkers such as Robert Owen and Charles Fourier introduced the idea of peacefully integrating the values of socialism into modern liberalism-democratic socialism. Believing that modern liberalism did not go far enough to provide economic equality, democratic socialists argued for greater government intervention in society for the common good. While promoting socialist values, democratic socialists promoted modern liberal ideas such as individual rights and freedoms. Thus, democratic socialism mixed the ideologies of socialism and modern liberalism.

Therefore, democratic socialism can be located toward the left of the spectrum but not all the way left. This is because democratic socialism has more values of collectivism than modern liberalism has, but there are still elements of individualism in democratic socialism.

Examples of Canadian Democratic Socialism

Living in Canada, you have most likely encountered examples of democratic socialism. Canadian social programs include public health care, child-care tax credits, unemployment insurance, and others.

Read "Examples of Democratic Socialism in Canada" on pages 151-155 in your textbook, Understandings of Ideologies. This page will further your understanding of the responses to classical liberalism and the origins of socialism.

You should make notes, either on paper or on your computer, about what you have read.