Core Purpose of the Video

• Introduces historical materialism as explained in Vietnamese Marxist-Leninist textbooks.
• Distinguishes it from dialectical materialism and shows how it applies specifically to the study of human society.
• Frames it as a practical guide for workers to understand and change society.

Dialectical vs. Historical Materialism

• Dialectical materialism: A universal philosophy that explains the relationship between matter and consciousness, governed by laws like quantity-to-quality change and negation of negation. Applies to all phenomena in the universe.
• Historical materialism: Application of dialectical materialism to human society. Concerned only with social life and development.

Key Concepts of Historical Materialism

1. Social Being vs. Social Consciousness
   • Social being: The material life of society (production, survival needs, economy).
   • Social consciousness: The collective mental life (ideas, culture, beliefs).
   • The material base (being) determines consciousness, but consciousness can also impact back.
2. Economic Base and Superstructure
   • Base = relations of production (who owns, who works, how production is organized).
   • Superstructure = ideology, culture, institutions (art, religion, politics, state, etc.).
   • The superstructure defends and reflects the base, but can also influence it dialectically.
3. Productive Forces & Relations of Production
   • Productive forces = workers + means of production (tools, resources, knowledge).
   • Relations of production = ownership and organizational relationships in production.
   • When relations no longer fit the productive forces → social crisis → revolution.

Historical Development

• Feudalism → Capitalism:
  • Industrial revolution made feudal relations obsolete.
  • Capitalist class emerged, gained class consciousness, overthrew feudal lords.
• Capitalism → Socialism (in progress):
  • Capitalism socializes production (factories, global supply chains) but keeps private ownership.
  • This contradiction (social labor vs. private ownership) creates instability and the “seed” of socialism.

Revolutionary Mission

• Workers must develop class consciousness (awareness of exploitation and their role in production).