VLADIMIR ULYANOV. LENIN. RUSSIAN HISTORY. FREE ESSAY SAMPLE

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Vladimir Lenin was a founding father of the Russian Marxist-Leninist-Communism, an ideology that influenced the Soviet Union and its republic throughout the XX century and affected the lives of millions of people around the world. He was a revolutionary, a lawyer and a politician who turned the authoritarian, tsarist Russia into a communist country. The following essay explores Lenin briefly concentrating on the most important and interesting facts relating to his biography, work and contribution to the society.

Lenin had probably developed his abhorrence of tsars after his brother was hanged for plotting a terrorist attack against the Russian tsar. His sister who was with his brother was banished to family estate to be kept far from Moscow. Lenin chose a different approach to a popular revolution, so instead of contriving some violent schemes, he wanted to use a socialist/Marxist approach of getting what he wanted through public protests and peaceful demonstrations with the ultimate goal o seizing the reigns of power. As a very bright man Lenin was noted to speak French, German and English in addition to Russian. His philosophical works on materialism and empiriocriticism were instrumental in Leninist philosophy. His revolutionary propaganda works meant more than a year in a prison and a 4 year exile to Siberia. After the exile he traveled extensively throughout Europe, lectured and studied in Geneva State University. There he founded Iskra newspaper, a powerful propaganda tool. In Europe he came up with an alias, Lenin (Lawrence, 81).

It was during the WWI, when the Russian imperial troops were weakened, and the February revolution overthrew Tsar Nicholas II, Lenin decided to travel to Russia from Europe. On November 8, Lenin was the Chairman of the council of people's commissars as elected by the Russian congress. There he strived to gain as much of popular vote as possible and engage in various communal activity. His desire to bring electricity to the most secluded areas of Russia and Ukraine gave name to the first lamp as "Illich Lamp". By brining light into villages Lenin built loyalty and understood the importance of peasants and their productivity in building the new communist empire. Lenin was a rather peaceful man who believed that the WWI should be stopped and Russia should initiate peace treaty with Germany despite the objection of his friends who believed that the WWII will weaken Germany and make it more susceptible to communism (Riasanovsky, 149).

Lenin's high post gave him much power over the nation. His first step was to create a secret police that would search for foreign agents, the former Tsar spies and all those who objected the peaceful construction of communism. The role of Cheka (secret police) was to protect the new government from counter-revolutionaries and anarchists who wanted to restore tsarist Russia. Despite the works of secret police there had been an assassination attempt in January 1918 and despite his friend Fritz Platten shielded Lenin with his hand, Lenin got a bullet in his head. Another attempt took place in August of 1918, when Fanya Kaplan shot Lenin three times with 2 bullets getting into his body. Ever since that assassination attempt, the health of Lenin deteriorated and he ultimately died. The assassination attempts mobilized the communists to initiate Red Terror campaigns where every person suspected of anti-revolutionary activity would be tried and shot (Hosking, 212).

Speaking about the influence of Lenin on the masses, one needs to note that he was the person who united the peasants and workers with one idea of communism and socialism. He was the person who brought light and electricity into their apartments and removed king/tsar from power in soviet Russia. He was responsible for various trials and deaths of the royalty, whom Lenin believe would only mar the image of a communist state such as Russia. His successful theory about war and society actually made him effectively win the civil war in Russia where unprepared civilian peasants and workers together with students ultimately overthrew the professional military of the tsar and seized power. It was under Lenin's rule that the Russian private companies and institutions once owned by the middle class (bourgeoisie) or the upper class were given to common people of Russia.

Lenin's approach to politics appears to be rather consistent and powerful. His experience and skills obtained in Europe provided him with abilities to manage people in Russia from abroad, effectively preparing them for communist struggle. His propaganda as expressed in Iskra newspaper would ultimately reach other nations and countries, which as dominos would ultimately turn to socialism or communism. Lenin's initial attempt to install collectivism in the villages failed as it appeared that socialist projects were less efficient than capitalist enterprises. Unlike Stalin who punished the peasants with famine, Lenin was more flexible and would initiate a New Economic Policy under which some sort of private entrepreneurship was allowed as well as some small pieces of land could be used by independent peasants in any way they wanted as long as the peasants could finish the necessary state work on time (Chew, 57).

Lenin contributed to the creation of free medical care and education in the soviet union which would ultimately be supported and carried out by Stalin. Lenin believed that properly educated peasants, brought up with state-approved communist teachings could be governed even better than uneducated peasants simple because uneducated folk could believe just about anyone, while those educated in accordance with state-approved communist programs would always remain loyal to the communist regime.

Finally, I would like to note that Vladimir Illich Lenin was a key figure in the history of Russia whose programs and theory influence that country and ultimately turned it into the Soviet Union with its own ideology and ambitions. Lenin made his way from a law school students to the most powerful figure in Russia at his time, earning a world-wide recognition as the founding father of the Soviet Leninism-Marxism teachings. His programs united people of Russia under the communist regime and prepared the post-tsarist country for the rapid industrialization as ultimately carried out by Stalin.

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