What is to be done?

213 pages

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First published in early 1902, What Is To Be Done? remains a classic of Marxism on the building of the revolutionary party, setting out the party’s role as the organizer and director of the revolution.

The pamphlet was written as part of a conflict with the opportunism of the Economists who emphasized ‘bread and butter issues’ rather than theory. Lenin uses the book to explain the necessity of creating a centralized group of professional and dedicated revolutionary cadres before the “times of explosion and outbursts.” The history of the past 100 years has proven Lenin right: time and again the masses have been ready to struggle but let down by their leadership.

Today many working-class people are rejecting the status quo and beginning to look to socialist ideas as an alternative. It is the duty of Marxists to build an organization capable of offering a way forward, and What Is …

1 edition

Subjects

  • Socialism -- Russia.