Leninism vs. Marxism: Bolshevik Revolution Impact

Leninism and the Bolshevik Revolution

Vladimir Lenin and the Bolsheviks opposed the international war, believing in transforming it into a revolutionary war within their own country. By 1920, the economy and the support of the peasantry were in jeopardy, and millions of people had perished from disease and malnutrition.

Lenin's Interpretation of Marxism

Marxists typically viewed the urban working class as the driving force for socialist revolution and were somewhat indifferent to the peasantry. Lenin, however, recognized that a revolution in Russia could only succeed with the alliance of the peasantry, as they constituted the majority of the population. He also introduced his concept of a vanguard party, composed of revolutionaries waging a class war similar to how the military conducts a conventional war. This differed from the ideas proposed by Marx and Engels.

Lenin argued that the working class would develop a "trade union" consciousness but not a revolutionary one, as they would remain integrated within the dominant ideological framework. Therefore, it was crucial for a vanguard party to instill revolutionary consciousness in them. Furthermore, Lenin's ideas on party organization emphasized secrecy, centralization, and professional revolutionaries.

The Divide Between Communism and Social Democracy

The rift between communism and social democracy emerged in the aftermath of the Bolshevik Revolution. When European socialists observed the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly, the revolutionary terror, and the progression towards a one-party state, their doubts about whether this truly represented socialism intensified.

Key Figures and Their Perspectives

• Léon Blum (Prime Minister in the French Popular Front government) led one of the groups vehemently opposed to the affiliation. He characterized the Bolsheviks as a semi-permanent dictatorship wielded by a centralized and hierarchical party.
• Rosa Luxemburg, a revolutionary Marxist in the German SPD, believed in mass action by the working class as the means to achieve change and criticized Lenin's concept of a vanguard party. She attacked him for ultra-centralism.
• Leon Trotsky was another early critic. Initially, he did not support Lenin, but he later changed his stance and became a prominent figure in the 1917 revolution and the subsequent regime.