Perhaps the most prescient chapter, Djilas predicts that the Soviet bureaucracy would eventually either collapse or reform into a fascist-corporatist state. He did not foresee the 1991 collapse, but he correctly predicted the rise of security-state elites over ideological idealists.
Djilas’s critique began subtly in articles for the communist journal Borba (Struggle), but by 1953-1954, his tone had turned heretical. He rejected the idea that communism was a "workers' paradise." Instead, he argued that socialism had created a closed system of social stratification.
The book Nova Klasa: Analiza Komunističkog Sistema (The New Class: An Analysis of the Communist System) was written in 1955, after Djilas had been expelled from the party and imprisoned. It was published in English in 1957 by Frederick A. Praeger, but the original Serbo-Croatian manuscript was smuggled out of Yugoslavia.
Why the PDF is important today: The original Croatian/Serbian version ("Nova Klasa") contains linguistic and rhetorical nuances often lost in translation. Scholars hunting for the PDF version are usually seeking the original, uncensored text, or the rare 1957 first English edition, to study the precise terminology Djilas used for "bureaucratic ownership."
Milovan Đilas's 1957 work, "The New Class: An Analysis of the Communist System," offers a seminal critique of Soviet-style socialism, arguing that communist revolutions created a new, privileged bureaucratic elite that controls the nation's wealth. Written from within the system he analyzed, the text highlights the shift from ideological goals to a totalitarian monopoly designed to protect the ruling class's power. For more on the text's analysis of the communist system, visit CIA.gov. The New Class: An Analysis of the Communist System
The New Class: An Analysis of the Communist System. Article · Talk. Language; Loading… Download PDF; Watch · Edit · Origins. edit. The New Class: An Analysis of the Communist System
Milovan Đilas seminal book, The New Class: An Analysis of the Communist System (originally Nova klasa
), was published in 1957 and remains one of the most significant insider critiques of the 20th-century communist system. Core Thesis The central argument of The New Class Milovan Djilas Nova Klasa.pdf
is that communist revolutions, despite promising a "classless society," actually created a new ruling and exploiting class Nature of the New Class
: This class consists of the political bureaucracy—the party-state officials and technocrats—who exercise a total monopoly over the state and the economy. Control vs. Ownership
: While private property was abolished, this "new class" effectively "uses, enjoys, and disposes" of nationalised property as if they owned it collectively. Exploitation
: Đilas argued that this bureaucracy seized the "lion's share" of economic progress for their own benefits and privileges, such as exclusive housing and special access to goods, while the masses made the sacrifices. Key Themes and Arguments The Party-State
: The Communist Party acts as the "backbone" of all activity, where law is secondary to the decisions of party committees and secret police. Tyranny over the Mind
: The system demands absolute uniformity of viewpoint, including philosophical and moral views, creating what Đilas called a "brutal type of tyranny" over individual conscience. Stages of Communism : Đilas identified three phases: the revolutionary (Lenin), the (Stalin), and the non-dogmatic (collective leadership after Stalin). National Communism
: He foresaw that Eastern European nations would eventually seek independence from Soviet hegemony because the system was imposed on them rather than emerging from within. Liberty University Historical Significance The New Class: An Analysis of the Communist System Perhaps the most prescient chapter, Djilas predicts that
Published in 1957, "The New Class: An Analysis of the Communist System" by Milovan Djilas remains one of the most influential critiques of Marxist-Leninist regimes. Writing from a prison cell in Yugoslavia, Djilas—once a high-ranking communist official—exposed the paradox of a "classless" society that had birthed a new, more oppressive ruling elite. The Core Thesis: Rise of the Bureaucratic Elite
The central argument of The New Class is that communist revolutions did not abolish social hierarchy but replaced the old capitalist class with a political bureaucracy. This "New Class" consists of:
Party Officials: The core of the political structure who hold absolute authority.
Bureaucrats and Technocrats: Individuals who manage the state apparatus and economic resources.
Police and Military Leaders: Those who enforce the regime's control through repression.
Unlike traditional owners, this class does not "own" property through private deeds. Instead, they exercise collective ownership by controlling the state, which in turn owns all national resources. The New Class: An Analysis of the Communist System
Why should a modern reader care about a 70-year-old Yugoslav critique? Djilas’s critique began subtly in articles for the
Because Djilas wasn’t just talking about Yugoslavia. His model of the "New Class" has become the standard lens for analyzing post-Soviet oligarchs, Chinese party-state capitalism, and even bureaucratic welfare states.
The PDF remains a living document because it answers a question Karl Marx could not: What happens if revolutionaries win, but become the exploiters?
The central argument of the book is provocative and, at the time, heretical to Marxist doctrine. Đilas argues that while Communism claims to create a classless society, it actually creates a new ruling class: the Party Bureaucracy.
In a capitalist society, the ruling class is defined by ownership of capital (factories, land, money). In a Communist society, the state abolishes private ownership. Đilas argues that because the state owns everything, and the Party controls the state, the Party officials become the de facto owners.
Key points of his analysis include:
When you search for "Milovan Djilas Nova Klasa.pdf," you will encounter several versions. Be critical of what you download:
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