James Pham

Practice Essay Lenin and Ideology

Redo of Exam essay: Evaluate the view that Bolshevik power was consolidated in the period 19171924 only due to Lenins modifications to Communist ideology. Lenins modifications to Communist ideology in the period 1917-1924 was the sole reason for successful consolidation of Bolshevik power as it was imperative eliminating internal and external threats. This was due to Russias unique circumstances during the stages of their consolidation of power, such as its backwardness and the Russian Civil War, making direct implementation impractical. Lenins pragmatic approach to Communist ideology can be evidenced by three stages in the Bolshevik consolidation of power: during the first 6 months after assuming power, the Russian Civil War, and the period of recovery from the effects of War Communism. Lenins flexibility in implementing theory in the first 6 months of Bolshevik rule was crucial to their survival as it over came a variety of enemies and maintained support through establishing a coercive machinery of power. While initially following through on some of their promises, such as their initial decrees on Peace, Land and Bread as promised in the April Thesis, Lenin began to deviate from ideology, which promised a peoples government and an end to bureaucracy and the police, in order to maintain power. This was due to Russias backwardness, consisting of a small proletariat, the primary supporters of the Bolsheviks, and the remnants of petty bourgeoisie elements. Lenin achieved this through establishing a coercive machinery of power, accomplished in two clear stages. The first stage involved ensuring the Bolsheviks were the supreme force in Russia, through eliminating their political opposition while increasing their own power. The latter was achieved through immediately reforming political structure to place Sovnarkom, controlled by the Bolsheviks, at the head then manipulating a vote to give it the right to rule by decree. Lenin then made all other political Parties illegal and abolished the Constituent Assembly, which favored the Socialist revolutionaries ensuring that the Bolsheviks were the only remaining political power. The Bolsheviks then established a Dictatorship of the Proletariat due to Lenins belief that aside from allying with milder revolutionaries there was one other option, the retention of a purely Bolshevik government by means of political terror. This involved a suppression of the population through terror through the CHEKA, a secret police that killed 50,000 people in 1918 alone, and initializing the Red Terror, a ruthless counterrevolutionary movement. Lenin thus modified Communist ideology through creating a coercive machinery of power in order to overcome internal opposition and successfully retain power, a feature continued during the Civil War. The Russian Civil War shows how Lenins modifications to Communist ideology ensured Bolshevik survival, as it ensured the Bolsheviks the necessary support to win the war and defeat their enemies. Lenin achieved this through his practical approach which consisted of an immediate transition of Russia into a total Communist state, through a series of policies known as War Communism, in order to provide the army with sufficient support to defeat their enemies. This is exemplified War Communisms introduction of conscription, which resulted in a great increase in size of the Red Army; contradicting the ideologys promises for demilitarization. In order to support this growing army, War Communism also

James Pham entailed extremely strict controls placed on food and work in order to force upon the population ideal Communist practices. For example Lenin initialized a system of grain requisitioning from the peasants in order to feed the army and cities, and a militarization of labour to ensure maximum productivity from the workers to fuel the war effort. These actions show how Lenin made concessions to pragmatism as while they implemented Communist practices, the imminent need for their implementation caused them to do so by oppressing the population: The promises of building socialism were swallowed up by the imperatives of the Bolshevik government. While this oppression ensured Red victory, it resulted in mass social unrest, evidenced by the uprisings of the Kronstadt sailors and the peasants of the Tanban province, as socialism Russias backwards state served only to spread poverty. These were exacerbated by the famine that occurred as a result of the peasants sowing less grain, believing that the requisitioning made sowing excess redundant. This meant that Lenins flexibility during the Civil War, through promoting the growth of the Red Army and oppressing the population, was imperative in defeating the Bolsheviks immediate enemies but created a variety of social problems. The Bolsheviks overcame these problems and survived primarily through Lenins concessions to capitalism in his New Economic Policy: as it provided a reprieve for the Bolsheviks following the effects of War Communism. This was a complete deviation from the Bolsheviks initial promises to sever all ties with capitalism, and came about with Lenin realizing the error of deciding upon an immediate transition to Communist production and distribution due to Russias poverty. Lenin thus saw the need to immediately appease the population, primarily the peasantry as they comprised 80% of the population: Only by coming to an agreement with the peasantry can we save the socialist revolution. This meant a major component of the NEPs changes was the legalization private trade, made illegal under War Communisms centralization of power, and replacing grain requisitioning with a tax in kind. These reduced peasant opposition through allowing them to farm and sell their grain for profit, crucial in minimizing sentiments of exploitation which greatly alleviated social distress. Lenin also regained urban support, which was reduced due to 33% of the population migrating to the countryside to escape from the harsh policies of War Communism, by attracting the workers back to the cities through denationalizing many small factories and ending the militarization of labour: increasing wages and jobs. These were both crucial for the establishment of a firm economy through making profit the aim: as both the peasants and the workers resumed work enthusiastically due to their desire for profit. This was imperative in reducing opposition, but did so by promoting the growth of capitalism: through making the aim of work profit making and favoring the growth of profit-concerned peasants, the wealthy kulaks. These show that Lenins modifications to Communist ideology were crucial to Bolshevik retention of power as it enabled them to recover from the socially disastrous effects of the Civil War. Lenins pragmatic approach in the implementation of Communist ideology was thus the sole reason for the survival of the Bolsheviks as it enabled them to simultaneously defeat their enemies and maintain support. This can be seen with Lenins establishment of a coercive machinery of power in the first 6 months of Bolshevik rule, his use of oppression and force to ensure victory during the Russian Civil War and finally his reversion to capitalist methods in order to recover from the disastrous effects of War Communism.