Conservative and Socialist

[Diana.augustine08]

Conservative: Socialists begin their arguments with an analysis of history, from which they claim to derive certain trends leading inevitably to a socialist future. But in the day-to-day progress of history there are never such discernible trends. Only in retrospect does inevitability appear, for history occurs through accident, contingency, and individual struggle.
Socialist: If we thought the outcome of history were inevitable, we would not work so hard to transform the institutions of capitalist society. But to transform them we must first understand them, and we can only understand them by an analysis of their history. This is why historical analysis is important in socialist argument.
11. In the dispute the issue between the socialist and the conservatives can most accurately be described as whether
(A) a socialist society is the inevitable consequence of historical trends that can be identified by an analysis of history
(B) the institutions of capitalist society stand in need of transformation
(C) socialists’ arguments for the inevitability of socialism are justified
(D) it is possible for people by their own efforts to affect the course of history
(E) socialists analyze history in order to support the view that socialism is inevitable