Yu Liangzao: Multiple Meanings of the Concepts of "Socialist Revolution" and "Socialism" in Lenin's Writings after the October Revolution
In the writings of Lenin following the October Revolution, the concepts of "socialist revolution" and "socialism" appear with considerable frequency. These concepts possess profound and rich meanings. They refer to far more than the contemporary practice of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) [RCP(B)] and the Russian people in exploring paths toward socialism. It can be said that these concepts possess a far-reaching vision of the future, a broad global perspective, and serve to extol the heroic struggle of the RCP(B) and the people, while praising their determination and confidence to ensure the perpetual advancement of their cause. The author wishes to conduct a study on these issues and exchange views with colleagues in the academic community.
I. The concepts of "socialist revolution" and "socialism" in Lenin's writings were proposed by Lenin through considering and unifying the RCP(B)’s contemporary practice with the future of that practice.
In Lenin's writings during the early period following the victory of the October Revolution—from October 1917 to March 1918—there are many concepts regarding "socialist revolution" proposed by linking and unifying the RCP(B)’s current practice with its future. In mid-to-late November 1917 (Old Style), Lenin attended and addressed the Extraordinary All-Russia Congress of Soviets of Peasants' Deputies. Given that the Socialist-Revolutionaries held the majority of delegates while the Bolsheviks were in the minority, Lenin explicitly and high-profilely proposed and emphasized that the current Russian revolution was a socialist revolution. He stated: "This revolution is a socialist revolution. The abolition of private ownership of land, the introduction of workers' control, and the nationalization of banks—all these are measures leading to socialism. This is not yet socialism, but it is a measure leading us toward socialism in giant strides."
The ideological logic of this assertion is as follows: the measures currently taken by the RCP(B) in leading the people—such as abolishing private land ownership by landlords and redistributing the nation’s land equally among peasants based on household size, implementing workers’ control, and nationalizing banks—were not in themselves socialist revolutionary measures (Lenin had pointed out in April 1917 that these measures were compatible with capitalist development). However, adopting these measures was conducive to Soviet Russia's subsequent move toward socialist revolution; therefore, it was necessary to affirm that the current Russian revolution was a socialist revolution. This demonstrates that Lenin considered the contemporary practice of the RCP(B) and the people by linking and unifying it with the future of their practice; it was based on this consideration that he reached the conclusion that the current Russian revolution was a socialist revolution.
In his speech at this same congress, Lenin also pointed out: "A close alliance between the workers and the exploited peasantry, and a resolute struggle for Soviet power, will lead us to socialism. Any party that truly wishes to be a party of the people must state clearly and categorically: Our revolution is a socialist revolution." The meaning of this assertion is that the major struggles currently undertaken by the Russian people "will lead" Soviet Russia toward socialist revolution in the future. Because Soviet Russia would move toward socialist revolution later, the current revolution must be recognized as a socialist revolution. This assertion also demonstrates that Lenin linked and unified the current struggle of the RCP(B) and the people with their future struggle, and based on this consideration, identified the current Russian revolution as a socialist revolution.
In mid-January 1918, in his report on the work of the Council of People's Commissars at the Third All-Russia Congress of Workers', Soldiers', and Peasants' Deputies, Lenin noted: "I have no illusions; I know that we have only just entered the period of transition to socialism, that we have not yet reached socialism. But if you say that our state is a Socialist Soviet Republic, you are right, just as it is right to call many bourgeois republics in Western Europe democratic republics, although everyone knows that not one of the most democratic republics is fully democratic."
In this assertion, Lenin put forward a conclusion: Soviet Russia has only just begun to enter the period of transition to socialism and has not yet reached socialism. Yet at the same time, he proposed that if someone says Soviet Russia is a socialist state, they are also correct—just as it is common to call many Western European bourgeois states "democratic states" despite their lack of democracy. Although Soviet Russia did not yet have a socialist system, it certainly would have one in the future; therefore, it could be identified as a socialist state. Here, Lenin’s intellectual method was also to link and unify the contemporary practice of the RCP(B) and the people with the future of that practice, thereby reaching the conclusion that the Soviet state was a socialist state.
In his report at this congress, Lenin also pointed out: "We are not even close to finishing the transition period from capitalism to socialism. ... We have never harbored illusions on this point; we know how difficult the road from capitalism to socialism is. But we must say that our Soviet Republic is a socialist republic, because we have already set out on this path, and these words are by no means empty words." His thought here was that although Soviet Russia was far from finishing the transition period and far from entering a socialist society, the Soviet Republic must be called a socialist republic because it had already "set out on this path." It can be seen that having "set out on this path"—that is, a path tending toward a socialist society—is sufficient to identify it as a socialist republic. This is because Lenin linked and unified contemporary practice with the future of that practice (the future socialist society) and proposed corresponding conclusions.
During the period of the Russian Civil War, the concepts of socialism or communism in Lenin's writings also exhibited this intellectual method of linking and unifying contemporary practice with the future of that practice. In May 1919, in a speech at a relevant meeting, Lenin said: "The majority of those present who are under 30–35 years of age will be able to see the flowering of communism, which is still far from us." In October 1920, he further noted on this issue: "The generation of people who are now about 50 years old cannot expect to see a communist society. They will be dead by then. But the generation of those who are now 15 will see a communist society, and will build it with their own hands."
The meaning here is that contemporary Soviet Russia did not yet have a communist society (including its first stage, socialist society); however, in the relatively distant future—30 or 40 years later—a socialist society would certainly be built. Those who were only 15 then, and would reach 50 or 60 by that time, would live in a socialist society. This thought also included the following: the contemporary members of the RCP(B) and the masses must strive and struggle to realize socialism and communism, seeking to build socialist and communist societies as soon as possible. This shows that in Lenin’s thought, one must on the one hand look toward the distant future—seeing the picture of a completed socialist society 30 or 40 years hence—and on the other hand recognize the significance of the contemporary practice of the RCP(B) and the masses, namely that they were engaged in a great socialist revolution and socialist construction. Clearly, Lenin considered the issues of revolution and construction by linking and unifying contemporary practice with the future of that practice.
In Lenin's writings during the period of the New Economic Policy (NEP) in Soviet Russia, there are also numerous examples of using the concept of socialist society by linking and unifying contemporary practice with the future. In November 1922, in a speech at a plenary session of the Moscow Soviet, Lenin pointed out that socialism is not in the distant future, nor is it an abstract imaginary picture, much less a mysterious or abstruse "icon" (圣像) [1]. "We have dragged socialism into everyday life, and we must understand this." His meaning was that the Russian masses were working actively to implement the NEP. Their practice was of great significance; one could say they were unfolding economic construction and daily life with a socialist spiritual outlook.
However, a true socialist society had not yet been born; it would emerge in future practice. This is what Lenin meant when he said in the aforementioned speech: "Let me conclude by expressing the conviction that, however difficult this task may be, however new it may be compared with our previous tasks, and however many difficulties it may cause us, we shall all—not in a day, but in a few years—solve it at all costs, so that NEP Russia will become socialist Russia." This shows that in his mind, contemporary Russia was "NEP Russia," a Russia utilizing the role of capitalism to build socialism. Only after several or many years of effort could it become a socialist Russia. Clearly, Lenin considered the development of socialism by linking and unifying the contemporary practice of the Soviet people with the future of that practice. He recognized that the Soviet people exhibited a socialist spiritual outlook in their contemporary practice. Moreover, turning Russia into a socialist Russia was stipulated and required by the program of the RCP(B), and was the shared wish and goal of all the Soviet people. By recognizing the inevitability of achieving this goal, Lenin greatly enhanced his understanding of the significance of the masses' contemporary practice; thus, he asserted that socialist society was not in the distant future, but had already been "dragged into" the daily lives of the people.
In summary, in Lenin's thought, contemporary Russia had not yet built a socialist society, or rather, was not yet a socialist society. More directly, it was still in a historical stage prior to socialist society. However, its future was socialist and communist society. The goal of the Soviet people's contemporary practice was how to consolidate Soviet power and how to restore the national economy. Of course, their practice could be viewed as an action to explore the path of socialist construction, but "exploring the path" is neither equivalent to having built a socialist society nor to immediately marching toward the goal of a communist society.
Applying the theory of the "transition period" (过渡时期) [2] of Marx and Engels to consider the contemporary practice of Russia and the meaning of Lenin's related concepts, it can be seen that Lenin's understanding of the historical stage Soviet Russia was then in fully conformed to the theory of the "transition period." In May 1918, Lenin explicitly pointed out in a relevant article: "It seems that no one who has studied the economic problems of Russia has denied the transitional character of this economy. Nor, it seems, has any Communist denied that the term Socialist Soviet Republic implies the determination of Soviet power to achieve the transition to socialism, and not at all that the new economic system is recognized as a socialist order." The meaning of this assertion is very clear: Soviet society was not a socialist society; it was currently in a "transition period." It appears that Lenin only proposed that the current Russian revolution was a socialist revolution and that the current society of Soviet Russia was a socialist society by linking and unifying contemporary practice with the future, looking at the present through the lens of the future.
II. The concepts of "socialist revolution" and "socialism" in Lenin's writings were proposed by Lenin through considering and unifying the Russian Revolution with the revolution throughout Europe and the world revolution.
The concepts of "socialist revolution" and "socialism" appearing in Lenin's writings after the October Revolution were proposed as he considered and unified the Russian Revolution in connection with the pan-European and world revolutions. For instance, in The Immediate Tasks of the Soviet Government (April 1918), Lenin proposed: "In every socialist revolution, and consequently in the Russian socialist revolution which we began on October 25, 1917, the principal task of the proletariat, and of the poor peasants which it leads, is the positive or creative work of setting up an extremely intricate and delicate system of new organizational relationships extending to the planned production and distribution of the goods required for the existence of tens of millions of people." Textually, he identifies the Russian Revolution here as a socialist revolution. However, multiple layers of meaning can be interpreted from this judgment. One layer, as discussed above, is the meaning of connecting and unifying Soviet Russia's current practice with the future of that practice. He said the proletariat must carry out creative work in this revolution to establish a new system of social organization, namely a new social system (more directly, a socialist society). Clearly, this was not a task the Soviet Russian masses could complete in the present, but rather a task they could complete in the future.
The other layer of meaning is the connection and unification of the Russian Revolution with the pan-European and world revolutions. In the concluding section of this work, Lenin proposed: "The international situation... is very grave, difficult, and dangerous; it is necessary to maneuver and retreat; it is a period of waiting for new outbreaks of the revolution which is maturing in the West at an exceedingly slow pace." The phrase "waiting for new outbreaks of the revolution which is maturing in the West at an exceedingly slow pace" means that revolutions in Western European countries were in the process of maturing and might break out in the near future. The Soviet Russian people needed to wait for the Western European revolution to create a situation where the Russian and Western European revolutions advanced side-by-side and supported one another. This idea of Lenin’s was one of advancing the revolution collectively across all of Europe, or rather, the idea of correctly understanding the Russian Revolution by connecting and unifying it with the pan-European revolution.
It must also be noted that in his speech at the Seventh (Extraordinary) Congress of the RCP(B) [3] held in March 1918, Lenin expressed even more clearly the idea of correctly understanding the significance of the Russian Revolution by connecting and unifying it with the pan-European and world revolutions. He stated: "The greatest difficulty of the Russian Revolution, its greatest historical problem, is the need to solve international problems, the need to evoke a world revolution, to effect the transition from our strictly national revolution to the world revolution." A few days after the public release of The Immediate Tasks of the Soviet Government, Lenin proposed his Theses on the Immediate Tasks of the Soviet Government. In it, he wrote: "The Soviet Republic must adopt the following tactics: on the one hand, to exert every effort to ensure the country's speediest economic development, to increase its defense capacity, to create a powerful socialist army; on the other hand, in international policy, to pursue a policy of maneuvering, retreat, and waiting for the final maturation of the world proletarian revolution (which is maturing more rapidly in a number of advanced countries than it did previously)." Facts demonstrate that when Lenin proposed in The Immediate Tasks of the Soviet Government that the revolution breaking out in Russia on October 25, 1917, was a socialist revolution, he had a "tightly wound string" in his mind—the necessity of solving international tasks and evoking a world revolution; until such time as the pan-European or international revolution broke out, one had to maneuver, retreat, and wait. Therefore, when people recognize Lenin's concept or formulation of the Russian Revolution as a "socialist revolution," they must view it from the perspective of the totality of Lenin's thought during this period. The aforementioned "string" in Lenin's mind was, if not the entirety of his thought at the time, at least an extremely important and broad-ranging part of that totality. If we respect this fact, we can understand that Lenin discussed the nature and significance of the Russian Revolution by connecting and unifying it with the pan-European and world revolutions.
In November 1920, the Russian Civil War had been won, and history was entering a new period of peaceful construction. At this time, summarizing the ideas and practices since the October Revolution became particularly important. In speeches at relevant meetings, Lenin proposed: "Three years ago, when we raised the question of the tasks and conditions for the victory of the proletarian revolution in Russia, we always stated clearly: this victory cannot be consolidated without the support of the proletarian revolution in the West; a correct appraisal of our revolution is only possible from the international point of view. To achieve a lasting victory, we must ensure that the proletarian revolution triumphs in all countries, or at least in several major capitalist countries." He further remarked: "We knew then that our victory would be a lasting victory only when our cause had triumphed the world over, for we began our work counting exclusively on the world revolution." By "three years ago," Lenin was referring to the time of launching the October Revolution in 1917. When he said "we always stated clearly," he meant this was not said occasionally or once or twice, but frequently and explicitly. What was stated? That "a correct appraisal of our revolution is only possible from the international point of view," and that we "counted exclusively on the world revolution." If someone believes these judgments only prove Lenin held such thoughts during the October Revolution period and not afterward, the following judgment proves he held them at least from the October Revolution until his remarks in November 1920. He said: "The Mensheviks [4] say we want to defeat the world bourgeoisie single-handedly. However, we have always said that we are only one link in the chain of the world revolution, and have never set ourselves the task of achieving victory by our own efforts alone." His use of "we have always said" indicates they had said this consistently since the October Revolution. His statement that they "never set themselves the task" of winning solely by their own efforts shows that during the three years starting from the October Revolution, the RCP(B) had not set such a task for itself. This series of judgments by Lenin is sufficient to prove that he considered the Russian Revolution in connection and unification with the pan-European and world revolutions to analyze and understand its nature and significance.
III. The concept of "socialism" in Lenin's writings was proposed by connecting and unifying the vital measures taken by the Soviet Russian people with the future and destiny of socialism. It was a tribute to the heroic fighting spirit of the RCP(B) and the people, and a manifestation of his firm determination and confidence that the cause of the Party and the people must continue to advance perpetually.
In the early period of victory following the October Revolution, Lenin and the RCP(B) led the people in implementing measures of "accounting and control" [5]. This involved establishing workers' organizations in industrial and mining enterprises to supervise production and distribution and to calculate relevant accounts. However, the premise of this measure was not the expropriation of capitalists' property; that is, it did not change the nature of the ownership of the means of production. Yet, Lenin proposed at the time that accounting and control were socialism. In November 1917, shortly after the victory of the October armed uprising, Lenin noted in a speech: "Let the workers set about establishing workers' control at their factories; let them supply the villages with manufactured goods and exchange them for grain. Every product, every Russian pound [6] of grain must be accounted for, because socialism is, above all, accounting." "The exchange of manufactured goods for grain and the exercise of strict control and accounting over production—that is the beginning of socialism." He also said: "Socialism is accounting. If you wish to implement accounting for every piece of iron and every piece of cloth, that is socialism." Lenin's assertions that "socialism is first of all accounting," "that is the beginning of socialism," and "that is socialism" lie in his endowing "accounting and control" with the character and significance of socialism. As a Marxist, Lenin's understanding of what socialism or a socialist society is was consistent with that of Marx and Engels. That is to say, in Lenin's mind, a socialist society was a society of the "three absences"—no commodity production or monetary exchange, no classes or class distinctions, and no state or state apparatus. Yet, during this period, Lenin clearly stated in speeches that socialism is accounting and control. How is this to be understood?
It turns out that in Lenin’s mind, implementing "accounting and control" embodied the creativity and revolutionary enthusiasm of the masses and demonstrated the method and path for the Soviet Russian revolution to continue its advance. At the time, the masses in industrial and mining enterprises viewed accounting and control as their new way of life and participated in this work with great enthusiasm. Lenin gave this his full affirmation. He said: "The living, creative activity of the masses is the principal factor of the new public life." "Living, creative socialism is the product of the masses themselves." One can see that it was precisely by focusing on affirming the creativity of the masses and their enthusiasm for the cause, and by affirming the trend and inevitability of the perpetual advancement of the cause of the RCP(B) and the people, that Lenin called this measure "socialism."
As mentioned earlier, Soviet Russia was then in a "transitional period." In Lenin's thinking, the measure of "accounting and control" adopted during the "transitional period"—especially the spirit shown by the masses in pursuing a new way of life and their momentum in supervising social activities as the masters of society—was applicable to the first phase of communist society. Lenin wrote in Chapter 5 of The State and Revolution: "Accounting and control—that is the main thing required for 'arranging' the first phase of communist society and making it function correctly." This indicates that Lenin believed "accounting and control" not only played an important role during Russia's transitional period but would continue to be significant as the revolution developed into the first phase of communist society; thus, he called this measure socialism. It can also be said that Lenin proposed that these vital measures currently taken by the Soviet Russian people were socialism by connecting and unifying them with the development of the RCP(B)'s cause and the future destiny of socialism. It should be noted that when Lenin said "accounting and control" is socialism, he was discussing the issue in a non-strict sense; in reality, he did not change his thinking regarding socialist society as a society of the "three absences."
At the time of the victory of the October armed uprising and the establishment of Soviet power, Soviet Russia faced the threat of famine. Whether the necessary grain could be collected and distributed rationally was a matter of the future and destiny of Soviet power. At this point, Lenin proposed that the collection and rational distribution of grain was socialism.
In July 1918, just as the history of Soviet Russia was entering the period of the Civil War, Lenin pointed out in his report to the Fifth All-Russian Congress of Soviets: "Only when the People's Commissariat for Food [7], together with the People's Commissariat for Agriculture, nationalizes all goods and fixes prices, will we truly come into contact with socialism." The fact he spoke of here was that the Soviet regime was implementing a "state monopoly on the purchase and sale" of grain, prohibiting private trade in grain, and conducting unified state procurement at fixed prices. However, he emphasized that only at this point "do we truly come into contact with socialism." His meaning was clearly that ensuring the Soviet regime could collect grain meant that socialism had emerged in Soviet Russia. Regarding the Soviet implementation of the grain monopoly, he further noted: "We say that only now, when we have embarked on this path, has socialism ceased to be empty talk and become a living reality." This assertion evaluates the significance of the Soviet regime's grain collection at an even clearer and higher level—that is, it posits that the collection of grain meant the appearance of "living socialism" in Soviet Russia.
In the practice of grain collection at that time, rural kulaks [8] opposed state decrees and policies, refused to sell grain to the state, and engaged in grain speculation. In many places, kulaks formed reactionary armed groups and exerted every effort to resist the Soviet regime’s grain collection work. Urban workers' grain-requisitioning detachments often had to engage in heroic combat, sacrificing their blood and lives to collect grain and transport it back to the central cities threatened by famine. In view of this, the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) and the Soviet regime demanded a severe counter-attack against the kulaks' terror and sabotage. Regarding this, Lenin said: "If battle is required, we will not hesitate to wage that battle with decisive decrees. This is a battle truly for socialism—not for a dogma, not for a program, not for a single party or sect, but for living socialism, for the distribution of grain among hundreds of thousands and millions of starving people in the advanced regions of Russia, to ensure that once grain is available, it can be distributed relatively rationally." His meaning was that to guarantee the state's collection and safe transport of grain, a heroic and tenacious struggle had to be waged against hostile forces sabotaging state food policy. He emphasized that this struggle was one conducted "for living socialism."
It is certainly true that the collection of essential grain by the Soviet regime was of paramount importance, yet Lenin’s claim that the collection of grain meant the emergence of socialism—the emergence of "living socialism"—and that the struggle for this purpose was a struggle "for living socialism" requires deep study and comprehension. According to the idea that a socialist society is a "Three-Nothings" society [9], the Soviet regime’s collection of grain was not itself socialism. The reason Lenin called it socialism, and living socialism at that, lay in his recognition of the extreme importance of this work and this struggle—namely, that it concerned the life and death of the Soviet regime and the entire cause of the RCP(B). That is to say, only by considering the current measures and facts of grain collection in connection and unification with the future and destiny of socialism could he call these measures and facts "living socialism."
IV. Conclusion
The concepts proposed and elucidated by Lenin linked and unified the immediate practice of Soviet Russia with the future of that practice; by calling immediate practice "socialist revolution," he embodied a vision of the future. By linking and unifying the Russian Revolution with the revolution across all of Europe and the world revolution, calling the Russian Revolution a "socialist revolution" embodied a global vision. Lenin took things like "accounting and supervision," grain collection, and the rational distribution of grain—things that were not "socialism" in themselves—and elevated them to a position concerning the future and destiny of the Soviet regime. By calling them "socialism" or "living socialism," he greatly heightened the level of cognition regarding these tasks. This reflected Lenin’s praise for the heroic fighting spirit of the RCP(B) and the people, and demonstrated Lenin's strong determination and firm confidence that the cause of the Party and the people must advance perpetually. This vision of the future, global vision, and the determination and confidence in the heroic struggle and the perpetual advancement of the cause were formed during the long-term process of revolutionary struggle—especially in the practice of exploring paths to build a new system after the victory of the October Revolution. They were a correct summation and reflection of the experience of the international proletarian revolutionary struggle, and specifically of the Russian people's experience in revolutionary struggle and the construction of a new system.
The aforementioned vision of the future, global vision, spirit of heroic struggle, and the determination and confidence to make the cause advance perpetually found in Lenin's concepts possess important contemporary value. In the New Era of socialism with Chinese characteristics, the Communist Party of China (CPC) has displayed a profound vision of the future in promoting the development of its cause. For example, General Secretary Xi Jinping, in the report to the 19th CPC National Congress, built upon the Party's previous ideas regarding the "Two Centenary Goals" [10] to propose that a moderately prosperous society be built by the centenary of the Party's founding, followed by another thirty years of struggle to build China into a modern socialist country by the centenary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. This embodies the CPC’s vision of the future. In promoting the development of its cause, the CPC presents a broad global vision. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out in the report to the 20th CPC National Congress that building a community with a shared future for humanity is the way forward for all the world's people. Only when all countries follow the Great Way [11] of the world, live in harmony, and engage in win-win cooperation can prosperity be lasting and security be guaranteed. This discourse embodies the CPC’s broad global vision. In promoting its cause, the CPC also manifests a spirit of heroic struggle and the determination and confidence to ensure the Party's cause advances perpetually. For instance, in the New Era, the poverty alleviation battle led by the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core was a heroic and tenacious battle. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out in his speech at the national summary and commendation meeting for the poverty alleviation battle that the Party and the people have hacked through thorns and thistles [12], braved the wind and rain, and dared to "gnaw on hard bones" [13], achieving major historical successes. This discourse is a celebration of the CPC's spirit of heroic and tenacious struggle, a revelation of the source of strength for the perpetual advancement of the CPC’s cause, and a proclamation of the trend of the Party’s cause to overcome myriad difficulties and advance forever. It can be seen that the vision, spirit, determination, and confidence of the CPC in the New Era are in the same lineage as those found in Lenin's related concepts. The report to the 20th CPC National Congress pointed out that the CPC in the New Era has enriched and innovated Marxism, opening up a "new realm" in the Sinicization and modernization of Marxism. It is highly appropriate to use this assertion to explain how the CPC in the New Era has enriched and innovated the relevant thoughts of the classical Marxist writers on these issues.