REVISIONISM
(from Late Latin revisio - revision) - political. currents in international workers' movement, seeking, under the guise of "development", "correction" and "clarification" of Marxist theory, to deprive it of the revolutionaries. content.
R. formed into a con. 19th century in conditions when Marxism established itself as the dominant ideology of the labor movement. “The dialectics of history is such,” wrote V.I. Lenin, “that the theoretical victory of Marxism forces its enemies to dress up as Marxists” (Poln. sobr. soch., 5th ed., vol. 23, p. 3 (vol. 18, p. 546)).
In Social Democratic. party of Germany, certain essential aspects of R. were reflected already in the end. 1870s in the speeches of I. Höchberg, K. Schramm and E. Bernstein (the “Zurich Three”), who demanded that the party renounce the revolutionaries. class struggle and adaptation to exclude. laws against socialists. The line of the “Zurich Three” was sharply criticized in the “Circular Letter” of K. Marx and F. Engels to A. Bebel, W. Liebknecht, W. Bracke and others. September 17-18. 1879 (see Works, 2nd ed., vol. 19, pp. 161-75). In 1899, E. Bernstein published the book “The Prerequisites of Socialism and the Tasks of Social Democracy” (Russian translation, Moscow, 1901), which became a kind of “manifesto” of international. revisionism. In his work, Bernstein opportunistically interprets political and economical development of advanced capitalist countries in con. 19th century, called for a revision of the fundamental principles of Marxism. R. in the form of Bernsteinism, which absorbed certain features of English. Fabianism (see "Fabian Society") and other reformist concepts, became more or less widespread in the parties of the 2nd International of all countries. The appearance of R. reflected the influence of the bourgeoisie. ideology and politics on the working class. The social base of Russia was the labor aristocracy and the petty bourgeoisie joining the ranks of the working class.
In the beginning. 20th century international R. (despite certain peculiarities of the concepts of its individual bearers) acquired ideological content common to all countries. In the field of philosophy, the revisionists spoke out (some “bashfully”, others more openly) against dialecticalism. materialism, calling “to a certain extent” to return to Kant (E. Bernstein) or to adopt corrected Machism, modified Berkeleyanism (A. A. Bogdanov, V. A. Bazarov and other philosophical revisionists in Russia). Revolutionary They replaced dialectics with evolutionism. In the field of politics saving revisionists, citing “new data on economic development,” argued that, contrary to Marx, the concentration and displacement of small production by large-scale production in industry and trade occurs extremely slowly, and in rural areas. x-ve does not happen at all; that the development of cartels and trusts softens the economic crises and allows you to eliminate them completely; what a class. contradictions inherent in capitalism. build, dull and soften; that Marx’s theory of value should be “corrected” according to Böhm-Bawerk (one of the founders of the so-called Austrian school of political economy), i.e., essentially abandon the labor theory of value. In the field of politics, the revisionists came out with a revision of the Marxist doctrine of class. struggle; bourgeois-democratic freedom, according to their concepts, supposedly destroys the soil for class. struggle and change the character of the bourgeoisie. state, which, in their opinion, ceases to be a class body. domination.
Theoretical the views of the revisionists predetermined their attitude towards the ultimate goal of socialism. movements. This attitude was formulated with utmost brevity and clarity by Bernstein's catchphrase: “The final goal is nothing, movement is everything.” V.I. Lenin defined the essence of politics as follows. platform R.: “Determine your behavior from case to case, adapt to the events of the day, to the turns of political trifles, forget the fundamental interests of the proletariat and the main features of the entire capitalist system, the entire capitalist evolution, sacrifice these fundamental interests for the sake of the actual or perceived benefits of the moment, - such is the revisionist policy" (Poln. sobr. soch., 5th ed., vol. 17, p. 24 (vol. 15, p. 23)).
A special, sophisticated form of revisionism in international. The workers' movement became centrism, whose leaders and ideologists (K. Kautsky and others) initially criticized Bernstein's views, albeit inconsistently. In Russia, R. became the bearers in the 90s. 19th century “legal Marxists”, “economists”, later - Mensheviks, Trotskyists.
R. led to the loss of the fighting proletarian character of the majority of parties of the 2nd International and caused the collapse of the 2nd International during the 1st World War.
In con. 19 - beginning 20th centuries A. Bebel opposed R. Revisionist views were criticized by such representatives of the revolution. socialist directions movements like P. Lafargue, F. Mehring, R. Luxemburg, K. Zetkin and others. This means. contribution to the fight against philosophy. R. contributed by G.V. Plekhanov. However, the decisive role in revealing the social roots and political. the essence of R., both Russian and international, belongs to V.I. Lenin. In the fight against revisionists, against opportunists of all stripes, Lenin carried out historically necessary work to unite all the truly revolutionary international forces opposing Russia. labor movement, defended the purity of Marxism, theoretically, ideologically. and organizational principles of building and policy of the working class party, enriched Marxism with the discoveries of world history. meanings (see article Marxism-Leninism).
After Vel. Oct. socialist revolution K. Kautsky, R. Hilferding and many others. other international theorists. Social Democrats opposed the Soviets. republic, thereby revealing the counter-revolutionaries. the essence of their views. By distorting the nature of the state-monopoly systems that developed in a number of countries during and after World War I. tendencies, using revisionist theories of “ultra-imperialism”, “organized capitalism”, “democratic socialism”, etc., they tried to justify the possibility of capitalism growing into socialism. They also dogmatically rejected the new things that were introduced into the Marxist theory of world history. experience of the Bolshevik Party, V.I. Lenin.
Communist The International waged a constant struggle against the penetration of various forms of revisionism into communist society. movement. Twenty-one conditions for admission to the Comintern were aimed at protecting the communist. parties from centrist, revisionist elements. The most important factor in the communist struggle. movements against international revisionism was ideological and political. defeat of the Trotskyists, right-wing deviationists and bourgeois. nationalists in the ranks of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Nevertheless, penetration into the communist bourgeois party influences, the influx into the ranks of the Communist Parties of people from small towns especially susceptible to these influences. environment and insufficient theoretical The preparation of some communists created the basis for the revival of revisionist trends in the communist parties.
In con. 2nd World War (1944) in Communist. The US Party formed a revisionist group. E. Browder, who advocated the abandonment of an independent proletarian party and achieved the reorganization of the Communist Party into the “Communist Political Association,” which was called in its charter a “non-party organization.” As a result of ideological and organizational After the defeat of Browderism, the US Communist Party was restored in 1945.
In the 50s in communist Parties in a number of countries noted the emergence of revisionist groups that tried to take advantage of favorable economic conditions. conjuncture, increasing wages of workers in a number of capitalist. countries, reformist sentiments among some workers have not yet been overcome to “justify” the revision of the most important principles of Marxism-Leninism. Further development after the 2nd World War of the process of outgrowing monopoly. capitalism in state-monopoly capitalism, as well as new phenomena in the development of monopoly. capitalism associated with scientific and technical. revolution, which were obtained in the works of the bourgeoisie. and right-wing socialist. the authors' reformist interpretation did not always find a timely and comprehensive explanation; this created confusion among some members of individual communist groups. parties.
All R. 50s Revisionist platforms were presented by J. Gates, J. Clark, W. Norman and others in the USA, A. Giolitti in Italy, P. Herve and A. Lefebvre in France, A. Larsen in Denmark, J. Solsberg in Canada, etc. Revisionist views appeared during that period in some socialist countries. countries.
Theoretical modern concepts revisionists represent essentially the development of opportunist. concepts of Wernstein, Kautsky, Hilferding and other theorists of the 2nd International (although many revisionists deny that the reformist leaders of the 2nd International were their historical predecessors), “enriched” with the latest economic and political. (Keynesianism, theories of “people’s capitalism” and “industrial society”, concepts of the “welfare state”, “ethical socialism”, etc.) and philosophical (neorealism, neopositivism, operationalism, semantic philosophy, existentialism, etc.) bourgeois theories and right-wing socialist. reformism. At the same time, some of them disguise the reformist essence of their views with abundant references to Marx, Engels, Lenin; others propose abandoning the very word “Marxism”; others are trying to present Leninism as a national. doctrine not applicable to Western countries (eg Giolitti (Italy)). Dressing up as “opponents of dogmatism,” the revisionists obscure the main contradiction of modern history. era - the contradiction between the world systems of socialism and capitalism, ignore the leading role of socialism. state in the world revolutionary. process, they are trying to present a state monopoly. capitalism as socialism. So, for example, Amer. revisionist Bittelman repeats the statements of open apologists of Amer. imperialism about the formation of a “welfare state” in the United States, in which the class allegedly disappeared. contradictions, the class ceased. struggle; Amer. capitalism, according to Bittelman, entered a period of “transition to socialism.” Referring to new socio-economic processes, revisionists demand amendments to the fundamental provisions of Marxist theory and, by revising its fundamental principles, follow in the footsteps of those right-wing socialists. leaders who, after World War II, completed the transition to open renunciation of Marxism (see article Reformism).
With all the external diversity of theoretical concepts of modern revisionists their political. the direction is more or less uniform. “Modern revisionism,” indicates the Declaration of the Meeting of Representatives of Communist and Workers’ Parties of Socialist Countries in 1957, “is trying to discredit the great teaching of Marxism-Leninism, declaring it “obsolete” and allegedly having now lost its significance for social development. Revisionists seek to eradicate the revolutionary soul of Marxism, to undermine faith of the working class and working people in socialism. They oppose the historical necessity of the proletarian revolution and the dictatorship of the proletariat in the transition from capitalism to socialism, deny the leading role of the Marxist-Leninist party, deny the principles of proletarian internationalism, demand the abandonment of the basic Leninist principles of party building and, above all, from democratic centralism, they demand the transformation of the communist party from a militant revolutionary organization into some kind of discussion club" ("Program documents of the struggle for peace, democracy and socialism", M., 1961, p. 15). R., which acts in theory and in practice as right-wing opportunism, is often intertwined and acts in concert with “left-wing” opportunism—dogmatism and sectarianism. History of the development of modern communist and the labor movement shows that attempts to revise Marxism-Leninism and revise the gene. communist lines movements from the “left” lead to no less destructive ones for the revolutionaries. results than revisionism "from the right". Deviations from the Marxist-Leninist line, both “to the right” and “to the left,” become especially dangerous when they are combined with manifestations of nationalism, great-power chauvinism and hegemonism, with ignoring the principles of proletarian internationalism, with calls for a split in the international. communist movement and disunity of world revolutionaries. strength This kind of practice began to be carried out from the beginning. 60s Mao Tse-tung's group in China. It receives a decisive rebuff from the overwhelming majority of communists. and workers' parties.
Marxist-Leninist parties consider the fight against revolution as their most important duty. Much attention was paid to the issues of combating revolution at the Moscow meetings of communist representatives. and the workers' parties of 1957 and 1960. Noting that the practice of the struggle of the working class, the entire course of societies. developments gave new brilliant confirmation of the great all-conquering power and vitality of Marxism-Leninism and decisively refuted all the “theories” of modern times. revisionists, Declaration of the Conference of Communist Representatives. and socialist workers' parties. countries 1957 and Statement of the Meeting of Communist Representatives. and workers' parties of 1960 emphasized at the same time the need to continue, in the interests of further development of communist. and the labor movement, a decisive struggle on two fronts - both against right-wing opportunism and against dogmatism and sectarianism. Communist Party of the Soviet Union along with other communists. parties has constantly opposed and continues to oppose any opportunistic distortions of Marxism-Leninism.
Lit.: Lenin V.I., The economic content of populism and its criticism in the book of Mr. Struve, Complete. collection cit., 5th ed., vol. 1, ch. 2 (vol. 1); his, Uncritical Criticism, ibid., vol. 3 (vol. 3); him, More on the question of the theory of implementation, ibid., vol. 4 (vol. 4); his, Protest of Russian Social Democrats, ibid.; his, Review. K. Kautsky. Bernstein und das sozialdemokratische Programm, ibid.; him, What to do?, ibid., vol. 6, ch. 1 (vol. 5); his, Materialism and empirio-criticism, ibid., vol. 18 (vol. 14); his, Marxism and Revisionism, ibid., vol. 17 (vol. 15); his, Disagreements in the European Labor Movement, ibid., vol. 20 (vol. 16); his, On some features of the historical development of Marxism, ibid., vol. 20 (vol. 17); his, Historical destinies of the teachings of Karl Marx, ibid., vol. 23 (vol. 18); his, Opportunism and the Collapse of the Second International, ibid., vol. 27 (vol. 22); his, State and Revolution, ibid., vol. 33 (vol. 25); his, The Proletarian Revolution and the Renegade Kautsky, ibid., vol. 37 (vol. 28); Resolution of the XXIII Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union on the Report of the CPSU Central Committee, M., 1966; Program documents of the struggle for peace, democracy and socialism, M., 1964; Revisionism is the main danger, M., 1958; Against Modern Revisionism, ed. prof. G. S. Vasetsky and A. P. Butenko, M., 1958; Foreign Marxists in the struggle against reformism and revisionism, collection. translations, M., 1960.
V. G. Tolstikov. Moscow.
Soviet historical encyclopedia. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. Ed. E. M. Zhukova. 1973-1982 .
Many people are interested in what revisionism is and what were the views of its representatives. Through this story, I will try to illuminate this issue in as much detail and detail as possible. So, the structure of my story is as follows:
- what is revisionism;
- types of revisionism;
- what were the views of the representatives of revisionism.
What is revisionism
Revisionism is ideas that proclaim that it is necessary to revise (revise) some generally accepted theories or doctrines. Revisionism is also called political currents in international labor movements, whose representatives sought, with developing, “correcting” and “clarifying” goals, to deprive Marxist theory of revolutionary meaning. The emergence of p revisionism is classified as late 19th century during strengthening Marxist ideas How dominant in ideology of the labor movement.
Varieties of Revisionism
Popular phenomena that are accustomed to being designated by this term are Marxist revisionism, revisionism in history (it is also called historical), as well as revisionism related to the Zionist movement of the twenties and thirties of the twentieth century.
What were the views of the representatives of revisionism
If we talk about representatives of revisionism and what their views were, first of all we should mention such a person as Eduard Bernstein. He was an ardent social democrat, a maximalist and a fairly good friend of Friedrich Engels. Edward believed that it was necessary to reconsider the Marxist doctrine, to carry out an audit of it.
One also cannot fail to mention Vladimir Jabotinsky, who tried to achieve equal rights for Jews in relation to Russians. He wanted to introduce Hebrew into every area of Jewish life. In relation to the Arab question, Jabotinsky advocated the need to develop Jewish paramilitary structures and exert harsh force pressure on the Arabs in order to create a Jewish state in Palestine. Vladimir believed that this fight was in accordance with moral rules.
Based on the name, revisionism implies some kind of revision (revision). In this case, revisionism is ideas aimed at revising existing foundations and views, doctrines.
It is worth noting that this concept was first used in German social democracy.
Here are examples of revisionism:
1. In Marxism: contradiction to the original postulates of Marxism;
2. Historical: revision of historical events. Identified with falsification;
3. Revisionism in the Zionist movement: revision of the existing political system in relation to Jews (in favor of Jews: revival of armed Jewish formations, creation of a Jewish state in Palestine).
Revisionism
(Latin revisio - revision) - a hostile ideological and political movement that arises within the workers' and communist movements under the banner of "criticism", "revision", "revision" or even "development" of Marxist-Leninist theory. It is one of the varieties.
Revisionism is generated by economic and socio-political conditions; its social basis is the privileged part - the “labor aristocracy” and the “labor bureaucracy”. The application of the methods of “liberalism” and reform policies by the ruling bourgeois parties also causes the strengthening of revisionism. The struggle between bourgeois and communist ideologies also plays a role in its emergence. On the one hand, each new success of Marxism-Leninism forces its enemies to often disguise themselves as Marxists and socialists. On the other hand, unstable or theoretically weak members of the communist movement may not withstand the pressure and slide into revisionist positions. Revisionism also arises in connection with major changes in the workers' and communist movements, when individual communists are unable to correctly comprehend new phenomena of reality and changes in the tactics of communist parties. The source that feeds revisionism can also be.
The founder of revisionism is Bernstein, who spoke at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. demanding a revision of Marx's teachings. Even then, revisionism became an international phenomenon, appearing not only in Germany, but also in France, Belgium, Russia and other countries. The revisionists revised Marxist philosophy, political economy and the theory of scientific communism. They, for example, declared that materialism had long been “refuted” by life, and proposed returning back to Kant’s idealism. They proposed replacing the revolutionary dialectical concept of development with an evolutionary one. Demanding “amendments” to Marx’s political economy, the revisionists developed a theory of the “sustainability” of small-scale production and argued that monopolies lead to the elimination of economic crises. They also stated that class contradictions were “dulling and softening,” and that universal suffrage was destroying the basis for class struggle. Preaching the “theory” of the spontaneous “transformation of capitalism into socialism,” the revisionists came out with a denial of the socialist revolution and the dictatorship of the proletariat. Pushing the labor movement onto the path, they put forward the slogan: “The ultimate goal is nothing, the movement is everything.” Lenin tirelessly and consistently exposed the views of Bernstein and his supporters, showed the danger of revisionism, and revealed its social roots and essence. In this struggle, he defended the revolutionary essence of Marxism and contributed to the strengthening and consolidation of the revolutionary wing in the international labor movement.
In the post-war period, a certain revival of revisionism among some members of the communist parties took place in the second half of the 50s, when, on the one hand, under the influence of the successes of the labor movement and the achievements of the world socialist system, the proletariat of developed capitalist countries achieved higher wages and improved social security etc., and on the other hand, the pressure of bourgeois ideology increased in connection with the counter-revolutionary rebellion in Hungary and criticism of Stalin’s personality cult at the 20th Congress of the CPSU. The revisionists tried to lead the communist parties onto the wrong path of exaggerating the issue of Stalin’s personality cult and discrediting all the achievements of socialism and the communist movement. They declared only a peaceful path to socialism and interpreted it in a typically reformist spirit, demanding freedom of factions and groupings and even the liquidation of Marxist-Leninist parties. A new revival of revisionism occurred in the second half of the 60s. in connection, in particular, with the attempts of anti-socialist forces in Czechoslovakia to push this country away from the path of building a socialist society. The revisionists (Chic, Garaudy, Fischer, etc.) came up with “new models of socialism,” denying the general laws of socialist construction. They took up arms against the idea of the need for a socialist revolution, the dictatorship of the proletariat, against the principles, sliding into anti-Sovietism. The fetishization of the scientific and technological revolution was accompanied by their denial of the leading role of the working class in the revolutionary movement; instead, the “new historical bloc” was recognized as the decisive force, in which the main place was given to students. The Communist parties resolutely resisted these attacks by the revisionists.
World reaction continues to place great hopes on revisionism, hoping to split and undermine the class struggle of the proletariat in capitalist states, and to hinder the construction of a new society in socialist countries. In the mid-70s, when, under the conditions of international detente, the ideological struggle intensified, and the ruling circles of the United States began a massive propaganda campaign for the “protection of human rights in socialist countries,” revisionist elements again became active in the international labor and communist movement, appearing in the guise of “ Eurocommunism" (J. Ellenstein and others). The revisionists opposed revolutionary theory and practice and sought to stop using the very terms “Marxism-Leninism,” “proletarian internationalism,” and “dictatorship of the proletariat” in Communist Party documents. They subjected real socialism, its domestic and foreign policies, to especially strong attacks. “Eurocommunism,” which has manifested itself not only in Europe, is a type of right-wing opportunism of the social democratic type. It caused some damage to the communist movement in some capitalist countries, contributed to the activation of anti-socialist forces in Poland in the early 80s, obscuring the aggressive policies of imperialism, and hampered the development of the anti-war movement, as well as the movement of solidarity with the national liberation and revolutionary struggle of peoples (Afghanistan, Kampuchea, etc.).
The systematic revival of revisionism clearly confirms the Marxist-Leninist conclusion that as long as imperialism exists, bourgeois and petty-bourgeois ideology can penetrate the communist movement, manifesting itself, among other things, in the form of revisionism. Therefore, Marxist parties constantly place primary emphasis on the purity of their ranks, the purity of their revolutionary ideology.
Scientific communism: Dictionary. - M.: Politizdat. Alexandrov V.V., Amvrosov A.A., Anufriev E.A., etc.; Ed. A. M. Rumyantseva. 1983 .
See what “Revisionism” is in other dictionaries:
revisionism- a, m. revisionnisme m., German. Revisionismus. Originated at the end of the 19th century. a current hostile to Marxism in the labor movement, which sought to distort Marxism by revising and revising its main provisions. BAS 1. Political movement asserting... ... Historical Dictionary of Gallicisms of the Russian Language
REVISIONISM- (from Late Lat. revisio revision), anti-scientific. revision of the provisions of Marxism-Leninism; opportunistic direction within the revolutionary labor movement, which, under the pretext of creativity. carries out an audit of new phenomena of reality... Philosophical Encyclopedia
REVISIONISM- [Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language
Revisionism- (revisionism) Any critical departure from the original interpretation of Marxist theory. This term appeared during the existence of the 2nd International and was associated with Bernstein’s criticism of theoretical premises and... ... Political science. Dictionary. Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
Revisionism- (revision) designation of ideological, political and scientific movements that revise the principles and provisions of any theory, concept or teaching... Historical Dictionary
REVISIONISM- (late Latin revisio revision) one of the dominant trends in the ideology of the labor movement of the late 19th mid-20th centuries. For the first time, representatives of the German social... ... came up with the idea of the need to revise the basic provisions of Marx's theory. The latest philosophical dictionary
REVISIONISM- REVISIONISM, huh, husband. A political movement that asserts the need to revise the basic provisions of Marxism-Leninism. | adj. revisionist, oh, oh. Ozhegov's explanatory dictionary. S.I. Ozhegov, N.Yu. Shvedova. 1949 1992 … Ozhegov's Explanatory Dictionary
REVISIONISM- (from Latin revisio revision) English. revisionism; German Revisionismus. 1. Revision (revision) of theory, doctrine, views. 2. A movement in the revolutionary workers’ movement that revises the fundamental provisions of Marxist theory in order to comprehend... ... Encyclopedia of Sociology
Revisionism - A political movement that asserts the need for revision - revision (2) - of the basic provisions of something. theory, smb. teachings, smb. views.
The meaning of the word Revisionism according to Ozhegov:
Revisionism - An opportunist current in the labor movement hostile to Marxism-Leninism, which, under the guise of a revision of Marxism-Leninism, distorts it, rejecting the leading role of the Marxist-Leninist party and the hegemony of the working class in the liberation movement (right-wing revisionism) or hiding behind ultra-revolutionary phrases, based on incorrect assessment of reality, leads to political sectarianism (left-wing revisionism)
Revisionism in the Encyclopedic Dictionary:
Definition of the word "Revisionism" according to TSB:
Revisionism— anti-scientific revision of the provisions of Marxism-Leninism. an opportunist trend within the revolutionary workers' movement, which, under the pretext of a creative understanding of new phenomena of reality, carries out a revision of the fundamental provisions of Marxist theory, confirmed by practice (see Opportunism).
There is a distinction between R. on the right, which replaces Marxist positions with bourgeois reformist views, and R. “on the left,” which replaces them with anarchist, Blanquist, and voluntarist attitudes. By its origin, revolution is the result of petty-bourgeois and bourgeois influence on the revolutionary labor movement, and by its class nature it is one of the forms of ideology of the petty bourgeoisie, the labor aristocracy, and the middle strata. It reflects the social position of these social groups, which are dual in nature, adjoining either the working class or the bourgeoisie. According to its social function, labor acts as a conductor of the influence of the bourgeoisie in the revolutionary labor movement. The methodological basis of R. is an eclectic mixture of subjectivism, dogmatism, mechanistic materialism, as well as schematism and one-sidedness.
R. arose in the late 70s. 19th century in the German Social Democratic Party, which took the position of Marxism. I. Höchberg, E. Bernstein and K. Schramm came out in 1879 with a revision of the basic principles of revolutionary theory. K. Marx and F. Engels in a special letter addressed to A. Bebel, W. Liebknecht, W. Bracke and others.
(“Circular Letter”) gave a decisive rebuff to this first attack by the revisionists. As a direction, R. took shape after the death of Marx and Engels, when in the 90s. Bernstein, having come up with an integral program for the revision of Marxism, gave a name to this movement (see Bernsteinism). At the beginning of the 20th century. R. spread in the social democratic movement of Germany, France, Austria-Hungary, Russia and other countries (K. Kautsky, O. Bauer, E. Vandervelde, F. Scheidemann, K. Legin, S. Prokopovich, L. Martov, L. Trotsky and others).
At the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries. R. came up with a revision of all the components of Marx’s teachings. In the field of philosophy, the revisionists did not recognize the scientific nature of dialectical materialism and tried to combine scientific socialism with Kantianism, Berkeleyanism and Machism. In economic theory, citing new data on economic development, they argued that the displacement of small-scale production by large-scale production has slowed down, and in agriculture is not happening at all, that trusts and cartels allow capitalism to eliminate crises, and therefore calculations for the collapse of capitalism are not realistic, because . there is a tendency to soften its contradictions. In the political field, absolutizing the significance of new phenomena of social life, the revisionists revised the Marxist doctrine of class struggle and its goals - the overthrow of the rule of the bourgeoisie, the establishment of the power of the working class, the dictatorship of the proletariat, the construction of socialism and communism. They declared that political freedom, democracy, and universal suffrage were destroying the basis for class struggle. The revisionists considered the task of the labor movement to be the struggle for partial reforms of capitalism.
“...The ultimate goal is nothing, movement is everything, this catchphrase of Bernstein,” wrote Lenin, “expresses the essence of revisionism better than many long arguments” (Poln. sobr. soch., 5th ed., vol. 17, p. 24). At the beginning of the 20th century. Along with the right R., R. also showed himself in the revolutionary labor movement.
“on the left,” which at that time spread in the Roman countries as “revolutionary syndicalism” and which, as V.I. Lenin noted, “... also adapts to Marxism, correcting it...” (ibid., p. 25).
V. I. Lenin gave scientifically grounded, deep criticism of R. Detailed criticism of R. is also contained in a number of works by G. V. Plekhanov, R. Luxemburg, K. Liebknecht, F. Mehring, K. Zetkin and others.
After the collapse of the 2nd International (1914), caused by the growth of opportunism, the labor movement split into a right-wing, social-reformist part and a left-wing, revolutionary part, which later developed into the international communist movement. After the Great October Socialist Revolution of 1917 in the international communist movement in the 20-40s. showed himself to be right-wing (right-wing deviation in some communist parties) and
“left” (“left communism”) R. A very massive attempt to revise Marxism-Leninism was undertaken within the communist movement in the 50s. Speculating on new post-war phenomena and processes that had not yet received a scientific Marxist explanation, and some difficulties in the development of the communist movement, in the late 50s. R. spread widely on the right, trying to push the revolutionary labor movement onto the social reformist path [A. Lefebvre, P. Herve (France), J. Gates, A. Bittelman (USA), A. Giolitti (Italy), M. Djilas (Yugoslavia), R. Zimand, L. Kolakowski (Poland), E. Bloch (GDR) ) and etc.]. The revisionist group of I. Nagy and G. Losonczy in Hungary posed a particular danger, which paved the way for the counter-revolutionary uprising of 1956 in Hungary.
“Modern revisionism,” said the 1957 Declaration of the Meeting of Representatives of Communist and Workers’ Parties of Socialist Countries, “is trying to discredit the great teaching of Marxism-Leninism, declaring it obsolete and supposedly having lost its significance for social development. The revisionists seek to corrode the revolutionary soul of Marxism and undermine the faith of the working class and working people in socialism. They oppose the historical necessity of the proletarian revolution and the dictatorship of the proletariat in the transition from capitalism to socialism, deny the leading role of the Marxist-Leninist party, deny the principles of proletarian internationalism, demand the abandonment of the basic Leninist principles of party building and, above all, democratic centralism, demand the transformation of the communist party from militant revolutionary organization into a kind of discussion club"
(“Program documents of the struggle for peace, democracy and socialism”, M., 1961, p. 15). The international communist movement condemned right-wing R. as the main danger, subjected it to comprehensive criticism, and gradually cleared its ranks of active supporters of R.
Throughout the 60s and early 70s. In the communist movement, R. showed himself to be “on the left.” Maoism, a petty-bourgeois chauvinist anti-Soviet doctrine, makes especially widespread use of left-wing revisionist ideology. In theoretical terms, Maoism carries out a revision of all the components of Marxism-Leninism. it represents an unprincipled eclectic combination of a number of vulgarized Marxist positions with Trotskyism and nationalism. From a right-wing revisionist position in the late 60s and early 70s. O. Shik, N. Svitak and others performed.
If you ask the question of what revisionism is (characterizing the views of figures of this trend), then the first association that arises is associated with the name. This ardent social democrat, maximalist and good friend of Engels proclaimed the need for a revision (revision) of the Marxist doctrine. Thanks to these events, the term "revisionism" was used for the first time in history. However, you shouldn’t get ahead of yourself; you need to understand everything consistently.
General meaning of the term
What is revisionism? The word itself “revisio” (from Latin) means “revision, rethinking.” Ideological ardent supporters of something usually view the revision of views in a negative way, equating it with opportunism (this is when the more knowledgeable side, talking about the pros, “forgets” to mention the cons). Such forgetfulness then turns into a profit (benefit) for those who did not warn others, less knowledgeable, about the possible negative consequences of something.
At this point, revisionism is not only applied to Marxism. The concept itself has become broader. One hears more and more often: “it is necessary to revise views in economics, philosophy,” etc. The data is outdated, so the concept needs to be revised.
General provisions of Marxism
Answering the question of what revisionism is, one cannot ignore the philosophical, economic and political teachings of Marxism. This is necessary to understand what did not suit the revisionists, why they wanted to carefully, in detail revise the theory developed by Marx and Engels, dominant in social democratic circles at the end of the 19th century.
3 provisions are key to understanding the basics of this system:
- Surplus value.
The value of a product, according to Marx, is determined by the amount of labor invested in it. This factor is key. To better understand this phenomenon, he introduces the concept of surplus value - the difference between the new value created in the labor process (profit, rent, taxes, etc.) and the materialized value (raw materials, wages to employees, materials, etc.). Under a capitalist economic formation, surplus value is appropriated by capitalists - the owners of the main means of production. - Materialistic understanding of history.
History and its course are subject to the objective laws of nature, the socio-economic relations that have developed in society. The role of leaders and kings is minimal. The study of objective laws allows us to make certain predictions. - Dictatorship of the proletariat.
Everything here is extremely simple: it is the proletariat, as the main producer of material assets, that is obliged to take control of the main means of production. Capitalists will not voluntarily give up their dominant position. This is where a revolution will break out, the main goal of which is the complete elimination of the unjust social system, and at the same time part of the remnants of the past that prevent all humanity from rushing into a bright future. For revolution is possible only on a global scale.
History of revisionism
Not everyone shared the assertion that humanity could best be warmed by the fire of world revolution. Considering this historical period, the end of the 19th century, it is necessary to remember: monarchies existed in Europe. There were no social guarantees for workers. Production was difficult and dangerous. Having received an injury or mutilation, the worker turned out to be a useless tramp.
Marxism, revisionism and social democracy were intricately woven into the mosaic of the prevailing socio-economic relations of society, in the hope of changing life for the better. Some of the first who began to criticize Marxism were K. Schramm, I. Hechberg, E. Bernstein. The last representative especially stood out in this field.
Ideological battles took place against the backdrop of persecution to which the Social Democrats were subjected. Suffice it to remember what happened in Russia, Germany, and a number of other countries. The Socialists were considered a terrorist organization.
Views of Eduard Bernstein
What is revisionism and how did “moderate” Social Democrats understand it? The main stumbling block was the class struggle according to Marx. This prominent politician believed that the destruction of the foundations of society was inevitable. While praising the revolution, he did not focus the attention of his like-minded people on the terror, chaos, and obscurantism that inevitably lurk in such periods of human history. World society will evolve, completely renewed, and will enter a wonderful new world of universal equality and prosperity.
Bernstein was well aware that there was an unprecedented, uncontrollable wave of violence that would then be impossible to suppress. Therefore, an alternative was proposed: it is possible and necessary to fight for your rights only by legal means. These included strikes, rallies, and demonstrations.
Internationalism and the brotherhood of peoples were rejected by the revisionists. Bolshevism was viewed exclusively as a purely Russian phenomenon. This is a response to centuries-old serfdom, the result of which in the future will be terrible bloody upheavals.
The only possible way is reforms, negotiations, the negotiating table. Peaceful resolution of deep social contradictions that have arisen.
Conclusion
What is revisionism after all? Why did European society, having believed in the possibility of peaceful democratic transformations, retain its potential? Historical experience has shown that consensus can be achieved. What is now observed in their society cannot be called normal development. Support for sexual minorities and a departure from traditional values inevitably lead to the idea that democracy also needs to be revised. Here the words of E. Bernstein come to mind very opportunely: “What is called the final goal means nothing to me, movement is everything.”
The study of Marxism, revisionism and social democracy is impossible without delving into the history of secret destructive organizations that are satanic in their essence. But that's a completely different story.
