“Workers of the World, Unite!” These words are the motto of the Union of Soviet Socialistic Republics, otherwise known as the Soviet Union. This nation would pose the greatest threat to the United States following World War II. Even after the fall of communism in the USSR in1991, this conflict which lasted over 40 years and nearly put the world on the brink of nuclear war would not have occurred if it were not for one man’s actions. This man was Vladimir Lenin. Lenin was always fond of the writings of Karl Marx in his book, “Das Kapital” and wanted to implement his ideologies to overthrow the tsarist regime in Russia and establish a communist one-party state. Lenin would face roadblocks throughout his journey into power from exile to assassination attempts. …show more content…
Lenin was born Vladimir Ilich Ulyanov on April 22, 1870, in the town of Simbirsk, Russia, which would later be renamed “Ulyanovsk” in his honor. It would not be until 1901 when he would change his name to Lenin while doing underground communist work. Education was very important to Lenin during his childhood. Being the child of educated parents, Lenin would finish school at the top of his class. There were many things that happened during Lenin’s childhood which would influence him when he would become an adult. One of these events was when Lenin was a boy and was with his father, who was inspector of schools in Russia, and was threatened with early retirement by the government, due to the fact of suspicious influences on the children and on Russian society. One event that would truly shape Lenin would be when his older brother, Aleksandr, was arrested and executed for being part of an assassination plot to kill Emperor Alexander III. Being that his father had passed
One man, Vladimir Lenin saw that Russia was spiraling downwards, having lost two battles in a row and having the highest death count out of all the European countries he saw that a change was needed. Lenin was the leader of the Bolsheviks who were a communist group that wanted to draw out of the war and over thrown Czar Nicholas II. Preaching peace, and food he wanted, ¨the offer of peace, the salvation of Petrograd, salvation from famine, and the transfer of land to the peasants who depended on them,¨ (Document 8). People were drawn into this and, ¨increasingly taken in by the propagandists of the united Socialist Party and their internationalis ideas,¨ (Document 9). This combined with high death rates, starvation, communist ideals started the overthrow of Russia and the end of the war.
Lenin’s actions are a prime example of a Bolshevik doing whatever it took for the sake of their country including fleeing to Switzerland, putting aside his beliefs for the sake of progress, and looking out for the future USSR from his deathbed. Lenin’s plan to save Russia would have been considered criminal, so he fled the country, his home, to avoid arrest from the czar’s secret police, still keeping in contact and working from a distance. When he returned from exile and gained power, given the ruined economy, trade, and production, Lenin put aside his plan for state-control and allowed a little capitalism in the New Economic Policy which recovered the country by 1928. Even after suffering a stroke Lenin voiced his opinion on Stalin as a successor, fearing the mishandling of power and his country’s fate. Lenin was a deserved leader of the Bolsheviks because he was willing to give everything to his
This tragedy led Lenin to cease his belief in the Russian Orthodox Church and Christianity. His study at Kazan University opened doors to his niche of revolution and civics. He was then introduced to Karl Marx's form of government, and that is where he chose the path to turn his country into communists. He was banished multiple times because he was looked upon as an activist. Lenin was under watch of the police, but that did not put a halt on his plans of a revolutionary war because he eagerly wanted his country to be communist (biography.com).
Lenin’s new government wanted to peacefully take Russia out of World War I, with no imperialism or capitalism involved. Russia had lost about one-third of its population (1.7 million soldiers) from World War I. Lenin, through the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, took Russia out of World War I due to the lives and resources the war caused Russia to lose. “‘Peace’, in Lenin’s usage, meant not only withdrawal from the imperialist war but also recognition that such withdrawal ‘is impossible...without the overthrow of capital’” (Fitzpatrick 51). Lenin wanted to get rid of capitalism and imperialism in Russia because of the unrest he knew it would cause, in order to create and preserve peace in
Lenin was a Marxist revolutionary who played a vital role in the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 and the establishment of the Soviet Union. Lenin's ideas about communism emphasized the need for a classless society in which the state would own and control the means of production. While Lenin's ideas were initially motivated by a desire for social justice and equality, the implementation of his policies led to the suppression of
His growing unpopularity for many of his isolated decisions as Tsar caused him to be disliked among Russians. After his long sought after resignation, Russia implemented a new style of government that was written by Karl Marx in The Communist Manifesto. This new style of government required many things in order to create a utopian society, but above all it was for the communal living that would allow social, economic, and political equality among citizens so that they could come together as one. With Vladimir Lennon as their leader, he decided that communism would a great fit for Russia however it was under Joseph Stalin who succeeded Lennon, that Russia began to implement Marxist ideologies like the redistribution of wealth, the abolishment of private property in Russia, and making Russia a state centered society,. These Marxist ideologies changed Russia from being an agrarian country to, under Stalin, becoming a power in Europe by industrializing its work force.
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
“The goal of socialism is communism.”- Vladimir Lenin. This quote is representation of Lenin’s philosophy toward his ideal governing system. Lenin was a catalyst to the rise and spread of Communism in Russia. He is the leading figure of the belief for equal power for all people.
Now some people would argue that Marx had his shot and that his system of government will never work. They would point to the failures of the Russian Revolution in 1917. However, I would argue that Lenin did not hold Marx’s ideals; instead he acted at his own self-interest and gave birth to a totalitarian state instead of following Marx and giving rise to a communism form of government. Vladimir Lenin founded the Russian Communist Party, lead the Bolshevik Revolution, and was know as the successor to Karl Marx’s works (Vladimir). Born on April 22, 1870, in Russia, Lenin had a mixed childhood growing up.
Karl Marx was a German philosopher and economist in the 18th century. He is known for his book the Communist Manifesto that was published in 1848. Marx believed that a revolution of the working classes would over throw the capitalist order and creates a classless society. The Industrial Revolutions led to the proletarianization; his partner Friedrich Engels explained why the changes created by the proletarianization of the worker would develop into a huge problem for industrial societies. I do believe that Karl Marx’s vision of communism in the Communist Manifesto could re-emerge as a popular and workable philosophy of social, economic, and political organization.
He had some conflicts with Stalin and warned that there would be problem of power between Stalin and Trotsky. When Lenin was about to die, there was the battle between two of them. Thanks to close friendship with Lenin, Trotsky had powerful position, but Stalin allied with the others and attacked. Later, Lenin died because of the brain hemorrhage.
That’s why his doctrine Leninism called for a small organized group of intellectuals to lead the revolution, as they would be the only ones who could see beyond the daily necessities and ensure the accomplishment of the long-term goals of the new system (Rieber and Nelson 57-64). To succeed, the newly formed Bolshevik Party needed the full trust and obedience of the people, a feat manageable by infiltrating trade unions and eliminating all potential enemies of the regime. In October 1917, Lenin and his party seized power with almost no opposition and won the civil war that followed to establish full leadership of the nation. While this partisan approach worked well for the period of the revolution, it was far from the fundamental Marxist ideas of a rule by the people and in the end would only perpetuate class differences between those in the party and the rest. Realizing that, Lenin developed the idea of the fair socialist government, which guaranteed low prices and equal wages without consuming too much money itself, in his book The State and
In 1922 Lenin suffered two strokes that left him immobile and without speech. This meant that Stalin as General Secretary, was his only link with the Communist Party. But Lenin was beginning to have his doubts about Stalin, he feared that Stalin would try to build up power and become the new leader of the USSR. In 1922 Lenin made a will that stated his fears about Stalin, it read; ‘Comrade Stalin has concentrated boundless power in his hands and I am not sure he can always use that power with sufficient caution.’ When Lenin died on the 21st of January 1924 Stalin was in the perfect position to rise to the top and cement his rule.
“The most important thing when ill is to never lose heart” – Vladimir Lenin. Vladimir Lenin was born on 10 April 1870. Lenin lived with a well-educated family and was very close to both of his parents. Lenin was intrigued at the writings of Karl Marx and proclaimed himself a Marxists. Furthermore, after Lenin returned from exile and came back to Russia, he ended up playing a very a prominent role in the Russian Revolution.
After Lenin’s death in 1924 and rivalry amongst the Communist Party to take his place , only two candidates stood out from the others . Trotsky and Stalin both wanted supreme power but Stalin’s ability and determination to undermine his opponents led him to become in 1929 the undisputed party leader . To continue , Stalin once in power was about to set new policies , especially economical and social in order to modernize the USSR . Knowing that Russia was as backward in certain area as it used to be one hundred years earlier . It was indeed going to be a huge challenge for Stalin , who was willing to do anything to accomplish his ideas .