Quiz: On Authority

7 questions drawn at random. Score 80% for a silver medal.

1. 1. How does Engels characterise a revolution?

   As the abolition of all authority whatsoever As a peaceful change in the opinion of the majority As a purely economic event As the most authoritarian thing there is
2. 2. How does Engels define authority at the start of the article?

   The imposition of another’s will upon ours The rule of capital over labour in the workshop Respect freely given to expert knowledge and experience The legal power of the state over its subjects
3. 3. What do all socialists agree will happen to public functions after the social revolution?

   They will lose their political character and become administrative They will become hereditary They will be abolished at a stroke, together with the state They will pass to the church
4. 4. Where does Engels say the need for imperious authority is most evident?

   In a village commune at harvest time On a ship on the high seas In a cotton mill In a parliament
5. 5. In the cotton mill, what fixes the hours at which everyone begins and ends work?

   The owner’s personal whim The factory inspectors Each worker’s own choice The authority of steam
6. 6. According to Engels, what remains true even if questions in the mill are settled by majority vote?

   Someone’s will must still be subordinated The mill must stop until all the workers agree The capitalist regains control Authority disappears entirely
7. 7. To abolish authority in large-scale industry would, Engels says, amount to what?

   Establishing workers’ control Abolishing industry itself and returning to the distaff Ending the division of labour at a single stroke Increasing productivity