Definition

1. Noun:
   • A political ideology advocating the gradual achievement of socialist goals through legal, democratic, and reformist means, rather than revolutionary action. Fabianism is characterized by its belief in the "permeation" of socialist ideas into existing institutions and its commitment to patient, incremental change.

Usage

• Fabianism is typically used as a proper noun to refer to the specific ideology and strategy associated with the Fabian Society, a British socialist organization founded in 1884.
• It describes a method or approach to political change.

Examples

• Noun:
  • The party's strategy was rooted in Fabianism, focusing on educational campaigns and legislative reforms.
  • He argued that Fabianism offered a more practical path to social justice than revolutionary upheaval.

Advanced Usage

• "The Fabian tactic": Refers to the cautious, delaying strategy of the Roman general Fabius Maximus, from which the Fabian Society took its name, metaphorically applied to a gradualist political approach.
  • Their Fabian tactic involved winning small, successive policy victories over decades.

Variants and Related Words

• Fabian (adj): Pertaining to Fabianism or the Fabian Society.
  • She was a leading Fabian intellectual.
• Fabian (n): A member or supporter of the Fabian Society.
  • The conference was attended by Fabians from across the country.
• Fabian Society (proper noun): The specific organization promoting Fabianism.

Synonyms

• Gradualism: The policy of advancing toward a goal by gradual, often slow, stages.
• Reformism: A doctrine advocating the reform of an existing system or institution rather than its abolition and replacement.
• Evolutionary socialism: A term often used synonymously with Fabianism, emphasizing slow, organic change.

Antonyms

• Revolutionism: The doctrine or policy of bringing about political or social change through revolution.
• Bolshevism: A revolutionary socialist doctrine associated with immediate, violent seizure of state power.
• Insurrectionism: The advocacy or practice of armed rebellion against an established government.

Noun

1. socialism to be established by gradual reforms within the law