Lenin CW-Vol. 23.pdf - From Marx to Mao

105IMPERIALISM AND THE SPLIT IN SOCIALISMIs there any connection between imperialism and themonstrous and disgusting victory opportunism (in the formof social-chauvinism) has gained over the labour movementin Europe?This is the fundamental question of modern socialism.And having in our Party literature fully established,first, the imperialist character of our era and of the presentwar, and, second, the inseparable historical connectionbetween social-chauvinism and opportunism, as well as theintrinsic similarity of their political ideology, we canand must proceed to analyse this fundamental question.We have to begin with as precise and full a definitionof imperialism as possible. Imperialism is a specific historicalstage of capitalism. Its specific character is threefold:imperialism is (1) monopoly capitalism; (2) parasitic,or decaying capitalism; (3) moribund capitalism.The supplanting of free competition by monopoly is thefundamental economic feature, the quintessence of imperialism.Monopoly manifests itself in five principal forms:(1) cartels, syndicates and trusts—the concentration ofproduction has reached a degree which gives rise to thesemonopolistic associations of capitalists; (2) the monopolisticposition of the big banks—three, four or fivegiant banks manipulate the whole economic life of America,France, Germany; (3) seizure of the sources of rawmaterial by the trusts and the financial oligarchy (financecapital is monopoly industrial capital merged with bankcapital); (4) the (economic) partition of the world by theinternational cartels has begun. There are already overone hundred such international cartels, which command