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Karl Marx: The Contributions Of Vladimir Lenin And Marxism

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Andre Abi Haidar PSPA 210 INTRODUCTION It is always difficult to write about and discuss Karl Marx, or more importantly the applications of Marx’s theories, due to the fact that he inspired and gave rise to many movements and revolutionaries, not all of which follow his theories to the point. Although Marx tends to be equated with Communism, it might not seem righteous to blame him for whatever shortcomings occurred when his theories were put to the test; Marx passed away well before the revolution in Russia, and he played no role in the emergence of the totalitarian regime at the time. When discussing Marx, however, Vladimir Lenin is one of the biggest highlights when it comes to studying the outcomes of Marx’s theories. …show more content…

This is primarily related to the views of Marx when it comes to the progression of a country to socialism. Marx believes that a transition through a fully developed capitalist state has to occur before the rise of socialism is witnessed. Lenin believed in the faster approach, and fought to have a straight jump to a socialist state, rather than pass through …show more content…

However, the question of whether he was a hero who toppled an oppressive tyranny, or a villain who replaced it with another remains a controversial one today. In 1917, Lenin helped overthrow the Russian tsar Nicholas II, and founded the Soviet Union. On October 1917, after the victory of the Russian Revolution, Lenin did not have a clear image on socialism, or how it meant to be built. He was, however, able to state the three principal characteristics of socialism, which were the public ownership of the means of production, an end to exploitation, and the dictatorship of the proletariat. He did not take action on these points, and did not devote much attention to socialism as he felt it was not yet an immediate issue. When the time came, and Lenin felt that it is suitable to take action, it can be argued that he did not look at Marx for answers, but due to his practical nature, preferred looking at the state that Russia was in, and based his actions on that. This was because Lenin felt that the world had changed since Marx’s time, primarily due to the development of

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