Hit: Research paper

I honestly think the is my best piece of writing this year. The research paper allowed me to focus on something I found interesting, so it keep me engaged throughout the process. I find it easier to write about something that I am interested, which makes this paper seems more close to me.

Russian Alterations of Marxist Ideals

            As Industrialization was sweeping across the globe, it created an entirelynew class, the proletariat. These working-class people allowed for industrialization to happen; however, many of their middle-class employers, also know as the bourgeois, were taking advantage of the proletariat. This new economic system, capitalism, allowed landowning people to start profiting fromthe working class. 

German philosopher Karl Marx hotly debated these topics in many of his works. Marx was one of the most influential peoplefor socialism and communism. His political worksincluded thoughts about class and class relations in modern society (“Karl Marx”). These thoughts came into to light at the end of the nineteenth when many socialist parties started to emerge in Europe (“Karl Marx”). His dreams never came to fruition during his life, but after his death, he would become a well know philosopher because of Russian politics (“Karl Marx”). 

Vladimir Ulyanov, also known under his pseudonym of Lenin, was a devotefollower of Marxism (“Leninism”). According to “Leninism,” after Russian government executed his brother for planning tomurder CzarNicholas, Lenin went on to study Marxist texts. These Marxian influences led him to develop many practical applications of Marxism (“Leninism”). He formed the Bolshevik party that would later overthrow the provisional government after the Russian Revolution of 1917 (“Vladimir Lenin”). All of these figures had one thing in common: a general understanding that communist ideals needed implementation in Russia, but the way Russia practiced communism has changed over the many years of the Soviet Union. Karl Marx’s theories on communism were altered in Russian communism through the political stance that Lenin and Stalin adopted; however, the economic goals of the communist party always stayed the same throughout the Soviet Union, and the criticisms of capitalism were primarily the same while Lenin took a more specific approach in the case of Imperialism.

One of the main foundations of communism was that criticisms of capitalism were essential for the implementation and understanding of communism. Criticismsallowpeople to see communism as a better alternative to capitalism. With many iterations of criticism, there were slight differences between old and new. Both Marx and Lenin agreed that capitalist society only allows for an increase in capitalism, but Lenin expanded on Marx’s thoughts by applying them to the realm of Imperialism.  

Marx and Lenin heavily criticised the economic aspects of communism. One of Marx’s criticisms lies in the minimum wage which most working-class people earn. According to Marx, minimum wage doesn’t allow one to increase their standard of living (Marx and Engels). This minimum wage only allows workers to survive. Another problem Marx asserted was that Capitalism forces underdeveloped countries to become dependent on developed countries (Marx and Engels). This dependency does not allow underdeveloped countries to become like the developed countries that support them. Marx and Engels sum up their argument perfectly: “In one word, it creates a world after its image.” Since capitalism only creates more capitalism, it is impossible for new countries to sustain themselves.

Lenin’s criticisms lie within the realm of imperialism as compared to Marx’s more general comments. In “The Critique of Imperialism,” Lenin states that imperialism is basically “monopoly capitalism.” These monopolies are not beneficial to anyone except the capitalists who controlthem. According to Lenin in “The Critique of Imperialism,” monopolies only take raw materials from their colonies. Monopoliesdrain resources that the colonies could be using for themselves. Lastly, the ways colonies conduct themselves only leads top more monopolies (Lenin, “The Critique of Imperialism”). These monopolies only hurt the people in the colonies. This shift in focus results from the European colonization of Africa. African colonizationwas more known and relevant to Lenin than it was to Marx.

Another significantcriticism of Capitalism resulted from their treatment of the proletariat. One of Marx’s criticisms was that the proletariat becomesdependent on the bourgeois because of capitalism (Marx and Engels). The reliance on the bourgeois makes it increasingly difficult for the proletariat to oppose capitalism. Marx also asserts that the bourgeois isthe only class that benefits from wage-labor (Marx and Engels). The proletariat cannot oppose capitalism because they are dependent on the bourgeois, and the bourgeoisiebenefits from their work. Lastly, Marx argues that in a capitalist system, workers cannot gain anything for themselves (Marx and Engels). All these factors add up to an impossible task for the proletariat to complete.

Once again, Lenin’s criticisms lie withinthe imperialist scope of capitalism. Lenin asserts that imperialism cause oppression of peoples, including but not limited to the proletariat (Lenin, “The Critique of Imperialism”). This oppression leads to no possible way for the proletariat to help themselves. Finally, Lenin argues that monopolies do not only oppress the proletariat, but they are parasitic to the proletariat (Lenin, “The Critique of Imperialism”). These criticisms of how the bourgeois treated the proletariat continued because the proletariat needed to realize howseveretheir conditions were. Workers see themselves in the same conditionsas others and do not understandthat everyone is in bad shape, so if someone is pointing out how their lives can be better, communism will gain more support.

Along with the criticisms that philosophers of communism brought, they brought a variety of theories for both economic and political aspects of communism. These theories varied over the course of communism in Russia, but the general economicgoal of communism was always the abolition of private property; however, practicing this idea changed over the period. Karl Marx beautifully stated his intentionsin The Communist Manifesto.Marx states his goals of communism as the “Abolition of private property." This “Abolition of private property” is what all later communist systems would strive to achieve, but none would accomplishthis goal.

Under Lenin, Russia progressed much towards the goal that Marx laid out for them. Lenin’s first economic system for Russia was known as War Communism. One feature of war communism was the Soviet Government nationalized all banks and seized control over international trade and domestic food trade (Harrison). These steps were the start in the direction of getting rid of private property. This first step allowed for the implementation of more communist ideals. When the Russian Government has control over all international trade, they started to distribute all goods to the Russian people. This administrative system helped all people have the same access to products; however, government food stocks did not last forever. The Russian government eventually started to raid peasant lands under the pretense of peasants holding food; however, this did not improve the situation (Harrison). These raids were meant to distribute food more fairly; however, it merely upsets the peasants more. A surge in peasant dissatisfactionin Russia would lead to the eventual downfall of war communism. A less strict system replaced war communism.

The next economic system Lenin would implement would be the NEP (New Economic Policy). The NEP ended many policies associated with war communism.  First, the NEP ended the forced collection of food from peasants and replaced it with a grain tax (“Lenin’s New Economic Policy”). This replacementhelped appease peasants who were unhappy with war communism. Another part of the NEP was that it denationalized small businesses and factory (“Lenin’s New Economic Policy”). All the changes made in the NEP reflected a more relaxed regime than the previous war communism. As stated in “Lenin’s New Economic Policy,”“the NEP was touted as a type of peaceable coexistence with capitalism.” Even though these policies seemed backwardin nature to the goals of communism laid out by Marx, they kept the criticalfeature of trying to abolish private property. Stalin would be more rapid in his implementation of a complete Marxist system.

Stalin rapidly changed the economic landscape of the Soviet Union through his Five-Year Plans (“Joseph Stalin”). The first Five-Year plan was especially important in the implementation of his communist ideals. The goal of this first Five-Year plan was “to eliminate all traces of capitalism, regardless of the financial cost or the cost in human lives” (“Joseph Stalin”). Stalin was very extreme with his ideas. Stalin collectivized farming and agriculture as soon as the communist party approved the first Five-Year plan (“Joseph Stalin”). The collectivization process was beneficial towards the abolition of private property that communism strived for, but for a high cost of human life because of famines that were a part of the collectivization process. All the slight changes from theory to practice are because of the social changes that result from a capitalist system to a communist system. The peasants became unhappy when Lenin’s regime took the food surpluses (Harrison), so Lenin transitioned to the NEP. Stalin successfully implemented the closest system to the trueabolition of private property because ofhis lack of care for human life (“Joseph Stalin”). Stalin justdid not try to minimize the cost of implementation of communism.

The First Five-Year plan made great strides toward the abolition of private property, but it also benefited the proletariat. Another one of Marx’s characteristics of a communist system was all the benefits it gave to the proletariat. Marx and Engels state that communism is purely for the proletariat (Marx and Engels). Marx and Engels repeatedly state these beliefsthroughout The Communist Manifesto.Marx also asserts that as capitalism progresses, the proletariat becomesincreasingly dependent on the Bourgeois (Marx and Engels). As the proletariat become more and more dependent on the Bourgeois, it becomes harder and harder to help themselves. Finally, Marx asserts that a member of society cannot advance themselves through wage-labor alone (Marx and Engels). All of Marx’s arguments relate that the Capitalist system is a hindrance to the proletariat in every way possible.

Lenin’s economic ideasfor the proletariat lie within his criticisms of the capitalist imperialism. In “The Critique of Imperialism,” Lenin asserts the capitalist imperialism does not further the proletariat in any way shape or form. Lenin’s arguments here provide the foundations for mostdebates against imperialism. Also, in the same essay, Lenin claims that capitalists hide proletarian problems under plans and reforms. These plans and reformsmake it increasingly easier for the proletariat of capitalist countries to see their conditions as falsely improving. Lenin also advocated for the proletariat to rise on their own. Lenin states that the proletariat should not be complacent with their conditions (Lenin, “Modern History Sourcebook”). The proletariat cannot better themselves under a conditionin which they are complacent. Stalin would later implement his ways of benefiting the proletariat.

Stalin’s extreme policies benefited the proletariat in numerous ways.  First, Stalin cared about the support the proletariat gave him (Van Ree). The support of the proletariat allowed him to enact all the policies that came under his reign. Stalin passedthe first Five-Year plan under which he collectivized farming in the Soviet Union (“Joseph Stalin”). The collectivization of farming benefited the proletariat through equal food distribution. The peasants, subsistence farmers, could not horde the foodso thatthe proletariat can eat. The reason why most economic policiesbenefitedthe proletariat is that thenproletariat allowed the communist government to stay in place. Communism is supposed to be beneficial to the proletariat, so the support of the proletariat keeps the communist party in power.

The communist party’s political ideasvaried widely throughout the lifespanof communism in Russia. The political landscape of the Soviet Union drastically shifted after Lenin’s death, but Lenin’s ideas expanded upon Marx’s original plans. The plansfor the leadershipof a communist state were varying among Marx, Lenin, and Stalin. Marx’s ideas,as stated in The Communist Manifesto, are that the bourgeois isunfit for leading for the proletariat. The bourgeois only wantsto benefit themselves, so they do not understand how their systems affect the proletariat. Marx’s agenda for the proletariat is that they require political power to manage any real change. Without political power, all their effort would be in vain.

Lenin’s theories focused on the more practical aspects of a Marxist system. Lenin advocated for his policyof Democratic centralism. In this system, free open party discussion was allowed, party action showed complete unity (“Leninism”). Only the party members participate in this democratic system. Another one of Lenin’s major political points is that the party must survive to lead the proletariat (Lenin, “Lenin’s Testament”). These two aspects defined most of what Lenin did as he headed the Soviets.

Stalin leadership of the Soviet Union was the most divergent from his previous examples. Stalin many times criticized Lenin’s view of state (Van Ree). This criticismemphasizes the Stalin was much stricter than Lenin. Stalin also achieved a dictatorship with complete authority under his reign (Reichmann). Stalin’s dictatorshipis fascinatingbecause scholars see Stalin as a devote follower of Lenin, but he threw away the democratic centralism that Lenin achieved. The needfor quicker results in the Soviet Union caused this change in the politicallandscape. Lenin systems achievedmany communist ways, but production never really peaked. Stalin’s policies not only delivereda more communistic system than Leninbut also ended up industrializing Russia in a new way.

Implementation methods are essentialwhen changing any system such as an economy or government, so naturally, the theories of the best way to implement communism varied between Marx and Lenin. Marx’s main contributions to the field of implementation were in his key ideas. First, the applicationof Communism requireseconomicrevolution (Marx and Engels). This implies that a state must have an economy before it can declare and adopt a communist system. Second, implementation is not universal across all states (Marx and Engels). This individualized implementation is especially truein the case of Russia.

Lenin’s theories primarily focused on the Russian implementation of communism. First, Russian conditions did not favor the peaceful implementationof communism in Russia (“Leninism”). The revolutions before communism mainly set the stage for the Bolshevik takeover. Lenin also split the implementation process into two settings: the economic fight and the political fight (Lenin, “Modern History Sourcebook”). The economic fight was the fight against the capitalist, and the political fight was for the extension of rights, democracy, and political power (Lenin, “Modern History Sourcebook”). These fights made it easier for working-classpeople to understand how to rebel and make a difference. Lastly, Lenin suggeststhat the proletariat of all states should unite for people with the politicalpower to hear them (Lenin, “Modern History Sourcebook”). The unification of the proletariat would give them increased odds against the capitalist in their struggle. Stalin’s implementation fell along the same lines as Lenin’s ideas. The reason for the general shifts in implementation theory was the desired audience for these figures’ messages. Marx was proclaiming a universalmethod of implementation, whereas Lenin conveyed a more localized messageto the Russian people. Lenin’s ideas still had merit internationally with his theories about unification and different fights.

Theoretical communism has been around since the mid-nineteenthcentury with ideas of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Vladimir Lenin was the first person to put those ideasinto concrete practice. And as with most cases, the theorydoes not translate to practice perfectly.This imperfect translation goes with the many criticisms of communism seen today. Still, all the policies and theorieswere all meant for one goal: the advancement and betterment of the working class in an industrial era.

Works Cited

Harrison, Mark. "War Communism." Encyclopedia of Russian History, edited by James R. Millar, vol. 4, Macmillan Reference USA, 2004, pp. 1658-1660. World History in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/CX3404101473/WHIC?u=lap17ehs&xid=5fdc62df. Accessed 31 Jan. 2018.

"Joseph Stalin Collectivizes the Soviet Union: 1928." Global Events:Milestone Events Throughout History, edited by Jennifer Stock, vol. 4: Europe, Gale, 2014. World History in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/QWOHPZ871752067/WHIC?u=lap17ehs&xid=431492e6. Accessed 31 Jan. 2018.

"Karl Marx." Encyclopediaof World Biography, Gale, 1998. World History in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K1631004333/WHIC?u=lap17ehs&xid=86da847a. Accessed 14 Dec. 2017.

Lenin, Vladimir. "Modern History Sourcebook: V.I. Lenin: Our Programme, 1899."Our Programme. Fordham University Internet History Sourcebooks Project,sourcebooks.fordham.edu/Halsall/mod/1899lenin-program.asp. Accessed 14 Dec. 2017.

Lenin, Vladimir I. "The Critique of Imperialism." The Cold War, edited by Walter Hixson, Primary Source Media, 2000. American Journey. World History in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/EJ2165000176/WHIC?u=lap17ehs&xid=f7b579b6. Accessed 14 Dec. 2017.

Lenin, Vladimir. "Lenin's Testament." 23 Dec. 1922. Seventeen Moments in Soviet History, Michigan State University, soviethistory.msu.edu/1924-2/lenins-succession/lenins-succession-texts/lenins-testament/. Accessed 10 Jan. 2018. Letter.

"Leninism." The Cold War--1945-1991, Gale, 1992. World History in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/BT1605203053/WHIC?u=lap17ehs&xid=0bdfd01f. Accessed 11 Jan. 2018.

"Lenin's New Economic Policy, 1921-1928." Historic World Events, Gale, 2014. World History in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/BT2359070554/WHIC?u=lap17ehs&xid=e9f8ab87. Accessed 31 Jan. 2018.

Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. The Communist Manifesto. 1888. Gutenberg, 2005. Project Gutenberg, www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/61. Accessed 23 Feb. 2018.

Reichman, Henry. “Reconsidering ‘Stalinism.’” Theory and Society, vol. 17, no. 1, 1988, pp. 57–89. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/657663.

Van Ree, E. “Stalin and Marxism: A Research Note.” Studies in East European Thought, vol. 49, no. 1, 1997, pp. 23–33. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/20099624.

"Vladimir Lenin Leads the Bolshevik Revolution: November 7, 1917." Global Events: Milestone Events Throughout History, edited by Jennifer Stock, vol. 2: Asia and Oceania, Gale, 2014. World History in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/WNCQKP995905783/WHIC?u=lap17ehs&xid=360be188. Accessed 11 Jan. 2018.