Karl Marx: the founder of "marxism"
What is marxism
Marxism is a government structure, that was introduced by Karl Marx. Marxism can be labeled as a radical form of socialism, and focuses on the class struggle that has always been existent in human societies. Marx argued that the warring classes were divided into two groups: the "haves," and the "have-nots."
"Haves"
The employers (Bourgeousie)
Controllers of all means of production
Become wealthy
"Haves"
The employers (Bourgeousie)
Controllers of all means of production
Become wealthy
"Have-Nots"
The workers (Proletariat)
Performed the horrific labor in terrible conditions
Exploited by capitalists
Remained poor
What is the goal of marxism
Karl Marx's predicted future-- Marx believed that the exploited workers would grow angry, and in protest rise up and overthrow the bourgeoisie. As Marx had once said:
"The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They HAVE the world to win. Workingmen of all countries, unite!"
The Ultimate Goal of Marxism: Marx believed that the workers revolution would result in increasing power in the proletariat. This "power" includes seizing control of the factories and being capable of changing the means of production. This "dictatorship of the Proletariat," having felt the pains and anger of being exploited, would control the government and ways of production so that everyone produced what society need, and shared the profits, promoting economic equality. Eventually, in the final form of Marxism, all classes would slowly become non-existent, and the complete equality would be known as "Communism." In communism, the means of production is owned by the people, not a dictator. Everyone would produce what they could, and in return would receive what they need; everyone is equal.
Marxism applied to the russian revolution
During the Russian Revolution, Marxism was promoted to the people in the form of Leninism, and was led and advertised by Vladimir Lenin (to learn more about Lenin, Please click on the "Lenin and Stalin: the Revolutionary Leaders" tab). Leninism was an imperfect style of Marxism, in which he adopted to create a revolutionary nationalism in the working class. The hopes of Leninism was to transform the Russian environment into a more suited industrialized area by means of a decentralized system, led by the proletariat as a system of proletarian direct democracy. The workers would hold political power via Soviets; local councils that govern their own area.
Learn more
Importance
Karl Marx and Marxism is a very important point to study during the Russian Revolution, as it reveals why the citizens of Russia would side with leaders like Lenin and how those leaders came into power. Marxism, being a form of economic systems, is also important to understand and compare to systems that we already know, such as capitalism and socialism. Studying more economic systems allows us to understand how the economy works, and why some systems are good and bad, and which ones are ultimately the best and worst. Finally, studying Marxism and its imperfect form of Leninism allows us to understand what the revolutionaries were aiming for when they did certain actions throughout the revolution, and why certain outcomes came about.