State and Revolution

I've been reading this book slowly over the past few weeks, just a few pages a day and I have really appreciated it now that I'm finishing it. I think it's a wonderful read not only for Lenin's perspective and thoughts but also for a good breakdown of Marx and Engels' writings. Lenin talks about arguments brought up against socialism, the steps to achieve full communism, what that would look like, and arguments for why socialism is necessary, and now possible after the European revolutions of the 19th century. I do not agree with everything he says, and I find some of his analyses to be somewhat incompatible with today's modern worker-state/worker-bourgeois dynamics. And some of his takes on democracy and necessity for a state apparatus I find to be a little jarring to say the least. But that could just be because Communism is something so far from the capitalist norm of today that It's hard to imagine anything else. I still love the book, I still would recommend, and I still feel it's very useful and informative even today for anyone wanting to find their way through leftism.

There are no shortage of reviews for this classic, for good reason. For all their influence and relevance, both Marx, but not so much Engels, did not leave behind a coherent doctrine, with elements of their philosophy scattered among many writings. The function of State and Revolution is to connect the dots and give a coherent, clear message of Marxian theory. It remains one of the clearest explanations of the Communist system. I was struck when reading State and Revolution how much resonates with today. Even though first published over a hundred years ago (1917), State and Revolution contains cutting analysis which holds up even one hundred years after it was first published. In this regard, pay attention to what Lenin says about how States are created and continue to exist. Or witness what Lenin says about how the memory and thoughts of great revolutionary thinkers are reduced to sound bytes, ignoring other important messages, or, to use Lenin’s words, being “canonized.” For example, for all the great words and deeds from Martin Luther King, the media mostly remember him for saying, “I have a dream, ....” leaving out the many other words and deeds he said. A frequent argument against Communist political systems is that historically most have been nothing but authoritarian dictatorships. State and Revolution clarifies this argument. Russia, Eastern Europe were mired in dictatorship, never progressing further, per Marxian theory, to a democratic, communistic state. The great benefit of State and Revolution is that Lenin fully explains this important issue, devoting an entire chapter to the “withering of the State.”

For those interested in history and the ever changing attitudes in society and governments this is a good read to understand the world order and societal challenges that lead to radical changes.

Although I am an anarchist, Lenin's work is useful in understanding the origins of the state in class society. From the irreconcilable class antagonisms that exist under class societies and the necessity of the state to enforce private property under capitalism, the democratic bourgeois republic emerges alongside the capitalist mode of production. Lenin argued that a Vanguard Party of the proletariat should be mobilized to increase revolutionary class consciousness among the working class, the state machinery of consumer society should be broken up and seized by the proletariat, a democratic dictatorship of the proletariat should use the state to combat reaction by the bourgeoisie, and that the elimination of class hierarchy would lead to the "withering away" of the state. Although Lenin's words resonate well, historically, his actions and words did not match, and overall, I favor anarchism and I would recommend reading Bakunin, Kropotkin, Goldman, Stirner, Proudhon, Bookchin, etc.

As described

Show your not an opportunist or a petty bourgeoisie by reading this book. Its a pretty nice look into Lenin's perspective on the state and what should happen to it in the event of a proletariat revolution ,although i feel he spends a bit to much time combating other socialist works and viewpoints instead of expanding on his own.

As someone who loves history and has a degree in political science, I found this to be a great book for those trying to understand the political context of that region and time period. Or anyone trying to learn more about workers revolutionary movements.

This boo is still relevant today

This book is a ATOM BOMB!

must read

Fab book and good value.

Good book

It's a great book for learning more about communism and an excellent book for learning the mecanics of politics and power. Even after nearly 100 years the content is still up to date; which is a good example of the bureaucracy's pace...