He wanted electrification of his backward country, but not the omnipotence of religion, which has returned – Lenin’s monument in front of Russia’s rebuilt central cathedral in Moscow.
Foto: picture alliance/dpa
One of the discoveries on the well-arranged book table on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin’s death in April this year is a biography of the Russian revolutionary and theorist written by an Austrian author duo. Like many other authors, Verena Moritz and Hannes Leidinger try to approach their protagonist in the area of tension between “dream and life,” as Lenin himself once put it. The result is not “the” biography or even a “reassessment,” but it is an outstanding book in post-real socialist times.
It’s not about saving the honor of a Bolshevik from eternal damnation, but about a serious, objective and calmly written portrait. This volume contains a balanced inventory of, above all, Lenin’s theoretical legacy as well as the extensive, but unflattering, state of research.
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Moritz/Leidinger deal with biographies that, beyond the glorifications in Soviet historiography, are quite ambivalent and often not benevolent, and study Lenin’s writings and those of his contemporaries as well as a number of archive materials. They note that the image of Lenin as a brutal power-monger has remained “relatively stable.” They are meticulously investigating revelations from the 1990s onwards that were intended to expose the founder of the Soviet state as a ruthless advocate of terror and oppression.
The two authors also do not believe in a simplistic opposition between Lenin and Stalin. Its theme is not the search for the “good Lenin” or an assessment of the failed socialist experiment. They want to discover the “historical Lenin” beyond all black and white drawings, of course with the knowledge of their time and the irrefutable fact of the defeat of real socialism.
Moritz/Leidinger is not concerned with “what could have been,” but rather with “what was or, for various reasons, developed into something that, on the one hand, was far removed from Lenin’s – quite questionable – original plans and, on the other hand, corresponded to them.” Since the two of them are guided by Karl Kautsky in their observations, their view of the concerns of Lenin and his closest comrades-in-arms is benevolent. At the same time, they find material for arguments to reject the policies of the first guard of the Bolsheviks as repressive or reactionary. »The rejection that Lenin’s regime received from many former companions, but also from other leftists, was not least fueled by fear of a disastrous compromise of Marxism and its teachings. The reputation of the social democratic ‘liberation project’, which earned historical merit in connection with the demand for civil rights, social reforms, the fight against birthright privileges or the long-overdue consideration of women’s rights, actually suffered enormous damage in the face of the October regime and its continuation under Stalin.”
Moritz/Leidinger give Lenin’s theoretical positions a special place, although the realpolitik, conflict-laden reality with which he had to deal in the interest of the working masses is not sufficiently captured. The revolutionary leader and statesman, who not only managed to push through a revolution that saw itself as socialist, but also against resistance within his own ranks, is clearly not given enough credit. And who managed to lead Russia out of the First World War, albeit at a very high price, the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty.
Along with Leon Trotsky, Lenin inspired a powerful anti-war and revolutionary movement outside of Russia. Under the conditions of civil wars and wars of intervention, he defended and established the young Soviet state, until then unique in the world and hope for the “countries of the East” (today they are called the Global South) as well as motivation for their anti-colonial, anti-imperialist struggle.
These two biographers also come to the conclusion that “Lenin never had any doubts about the necessity of violence and coercion,” both proving and deploring this. They state: “One thing is certain: the October revolution would not have taken place without Lenin, and the social revolution that he now proclaimed would have remained what a large proportion of his supporters believed it to be at the time: a utopia.” It could become a reality for seven decades with their achievements such as the crimes and failings in their name. Misery, exploitation, war, national and social oppression paved the way for the revolution – and after its ultimate failure, they are once again omnipresent worldwide.
Verena Moritz/Hannes Leidinger: Lenin. The biography. A reassessment. Residenz Verlag, 668 pages, hardcover, €38.
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