Marxism–Leninism

The four classics of Marxism–Leninism — Marx, Engels, Lenin, and Stalin.

Marxism–Leninism is a communist framework of socioeconomic, philosophical, and political ideas which represents the ideology of the international revolutionary movement.

The foundations of Marxism–Leninism were created with the theoretical contributions of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in the 19^th century, who developed what is known as Marxism through their analysis of human society and its features. Marxism–Leninism was brought to a higher stage with the contributions provided by Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin, including developing an understanding of imperialism, socialist construction, and the tactics and strategy for the working class and its vanguard party. Marxism–Leninism was successfully applied during the Great October Socialist Revolution and the construction of socialism in the Soviet Union, among the first socialist states in history.

It was the official ideology of the Soviet Union and other socialist states. After the success of the Russian revolution in 1917 and the establishment of the Soviet Union in 1922, many communist parties around the world began to adopt Marxism–Leninism as their ideological line, and Marxism–Leninism was the main theoretical framework which guided multiple proletarian revolutions across the globe during the 20^th century. Marxism–Leninism continues to be followed by a large portion of the international workers' movement and communist parties to this day.

Background

Development of Marxism

Main article: Marxism

Marxism–Leninism, as a development of Marxism, originated from the theories developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels during the 19^th century. Marx and Engels developed the principles of Marxism during an era of emerging industrial capitalism, class struggle between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie, and the formation of the first revolutionary socialist movements which were truly able to challenge the capitalist system.

Struggle against imperialism and opportunism

Marxism–Leninism was founded on the ideological and political concepts established by Vladimir Lenin following the split with the Mensheviks and opportunists of the Second International up to the Russian revolution of 1917 and formation of the Soviet Union under the Bolsheviks in 1922. After the death of Lenin, leadership of the revolution was entrusted to Joseph Stalin. The oppositionists in the Soviet Union would continue to resist the government headed by Stalin until the late 1930s.

Construction of socialism

The construction of socialism in the USSR helped solidify many concepts in the corpus of Marxist–Leninist theory, including socialism in one country and the intensification of class struggle under socialism. Joseph Stalin, the political and the theoretical successor to Lenin, synthesized the contributions of Lenin into Marxism–Leninism, a higher stage of Marxism for the era of imperialism and socialist revolution. Stalin articulated Lenin's ideas in works such as the 1924 pamphlet Foundations of Leninism. The collected contributions of Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin, and others is sometimes known as Marxism–Leninism–Stalinism.

Theory

Democratic centralism

Main article: Democratic centralism

A Marxist–Leninist party is organized according to democratic centralism. This means that first the party democratically decides something, and then all members are required to follow that decision and not work against it. If members still disagree with the decision, they are expected to request to discuss the issue again, not to form a faction or another party.

Vanguard party

Main article: Vanguardism

The vanguard party is a concept mostly attributed to Lenin, and synthesized from his different writings. It was effectively used by the Bolsheviks, themselves firstly a wing of the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party, during and after the October Revolution. This is a communist party which is functioning as the leadership of a social class or class-based political movement, and implicitly at least, a revolutionary class or political movement. This is usually in specific reference to a proletarian revolutionary party, such as the Bolsheviks in revolutionary Russia and the early Soviet Union.

Intensification of class struggle under socialism

Main article: Intensification of class struggle under socialism

Lenin and Stalin developed the concept that even after the proletarian revolution, bourgeois and other reactionary elements in society will not only continue to resist the construction of socialism, but increase their militancy many times over, aggravating class struggle. This tendency may be observed with the kulaks during the early history of the Soviet Union, who after the New Economic Policy was being transcended, resisted the revolutionary government headed by Stalin with various forms of sabotage during collectivization.

Socialist commodity production

Main article: Commodity production

Marxist–Leninist theory holds that the nature of commodity production is not strictly or ultimately a capitalist one, and that commodity production may still exist in the lower stage of socialism. In Economic Problems in the USSR, Stalin stated that commodity production still existed in the Soviet Union but was distinct from commodity production under capitalism insofar as the other fundamental features of capitalist relations which would influence it were abolished, and commodity production itself long predated the capitalist mode of production.

Analysis of imperialism

See also: Imperialism

Stalin maintained that Marxism–Leninism was the next stage in the development of Marxism, expanding theory for the era of imperialism and proletarian revolution.

Anti-revisionism

Main article: Anti-revisionism

Marxism–Leninism was developed during a time when there was an atmosphere of revisionism in surrounding socialist movements such as the ones associated with the Second International. Early anti-revisionist works by Leninist authors included Marxism and Revisionism, Anarchism or Socialism?, and Left-wing Communism: An Infantile Disorder. Modern anti-revisionists are often known as anti-revisionist Marxist–Leninists.

The national question

Main article: National liberation

The distinct definition for a nationality was developed by Stalin. He defined a nationality as a historically constituted, stable community of people, formed on the basis of a common language, territory, economic life, psychological makeup, and culture. Marxism–Leninism also established the concept of national self-determination and liberation.

Socialism in one country

Main article: Socialism in one country

Socialism in one country was codified by the Soviet government under Joseph Stalin, basing themselves heavily on the writings of Lenin. This theory holds the socialism is able to be built in a single country or limited expanse of countries even if they are underdeveloped economically. After constructing socialism, the revolutionary country would be able to contend with the imperialist and capitalist states and assist revolutionary movements abroad.

This theory was in direct conflict with the views held by the Trotskyists and other early Soviet factions, who believed that socialism would only be able to develop and resist imperialism by rapidly expanding into other, particularly Western imperialist, countries.

The lower and higher phases of communism

Unlike other Marxist tendencies such as left communism, Marxism–Leninism separates socialism into two distinct phases or stages of development. The first being the lower stage of socialism, which emerges immediately after the socialist revolution and still bears certain features of the capitalist mode of production, such as commodity production, albeit in a different form. The second stage being the higher stage of socialism, also known as communism. Communism represents the total negation of capitalism and bears none of its socioeconomic features.

External links

• Foundations of Leninism, by Joseph Stalin

See also

• Marxism
• Bolshevism