From Marx to Lenin: An evaluation of Marx's responsibility for Soviet authoritarianism

by David W. Lovell

Overview

This study is a contribution to the debate, begun just after the October Revolution, concerning the relationship between Marx's project and Soviet society. It focuses, however, only on the political aspects of the matter: to what extent was early Soviet authoritarianism the necessary outcome of Marx's works? Since Lenin's practice and theory largely determined and justified the early political character of the Soviet state, we may ask whether Lenin was implementing Marx's project or a project of his own design. Lenin, influenced by debates within Social Democracy and by the experience of the Russian revolutionary tradition, used a one-sided interpretation of Marx's work to build and defend a 'transition' which was fundamentally authoritarian. Marx was not causally responsible for the theoretical foundation of Soviet authoritarianism.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521125536
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	12/17/2009
Pages:	252
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.70(d)

Table of Contents

Preface; 1. Introduction; 2. Marx and the transition to socialism; 3. Engels, democracy and revolution; 4. Marxism and Revisionism; 5. The Russian revolutionary tradition; 6. Lenin and the Party; 7. Lenin and the dictatorship; 8. Conclusion; Notes; Select Bibliography; Index.