Essay
'To what extent was the split of the Social Democrats due to Lenin?'
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A Level Pearson/Edexcel History Paper 2 Section B essay, achieved a high level 5 (18/20) and written by a student predicted an A*
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‘To what extent was the split of the Social Democrats due to Lenin?’ [20 marks]The Social Democrats separated into the Bolshevik and Menshevik parties in 1903,
led by Lenin and Martov respectively. The two groups developed contrasting
ideologies, plans for pursuing power and interpretations of Marxism. While Lenin’s
role in the divide was clearly significant, he may not be entirely responsible for the
split of the Social Democrats.
On one hand, Lenin was responsible for the split of the Social Democrats, because he
chose to break away from traditional Marxist ideas at the risk of creating divisions
within the party. For example, Lenin’s ideas, such as prioritising practical, violent
revolution, contradicted the original Marxist theories, which stated that the
development of a proletariat was required before the bourgeoisie could be tackled.
However, conditions in Russia differed significantly from those Marx deemed
suitable for a revolution, especially given that Russia had a very small urban
proletariat, and therefore Lenin adapted the Marxist theology. This suggests that
Lenin was responsible for the split of the Social Democrats, because he provoked
divisions within the party by publishing controversial ideas regarding the party’s
interpretation of Marxism.
However, Lenin may not be entirely responsible for the split of the Social Democrats
was because the two groups could not agree on their interpretation of Marxist
theories in the context of Russia. For example, the Mensheviks believed in stagism,
meaning that Russia could not progress from autocracy to socialism immediately,
and therefore Russia would have to undergo a period of capitalism before it could
advance to socialism. They also supported reformism, which involved creating trade
unions in order to improve the workers’ conditions. However, the Bolsheviks
demanded outright revolution, despite the lack of support for their cause which
would almost definitely result in an unsuccessful attempt at a revolution. This
suggests that Lenin was not entirely responsible for the split of the Social Democrats,
because the party disagreed on how Marxism could be put into practice in Russia,
which would inevitably lead to the creation of two distinct groups.
Another reason why Lenin was responsible for the split of the Social Democrats was
because of his personal disagreements with Plekhanov and Martov. For example,
Lenin initially disagreed with Plekhanov regarding the nature of membership within
the Social Democrat party: Plekhanov wanted an inclusive group open to all potential
revolutionaries, whereas Lenin aimed to establish an exclusive group of
‘professional’ revolutionaries to lead a nationwide uprising. Lenin also became
involved in an internal conflict with Iskra co-editor Martov, who believed Lenin’s
ideas demonstrated his desire to become a dictator. This suggests that Lenin was
responsible for the split of the Social Democrats, because his personal
disagreements with powerful party members created tensions within the party,
resulting in the emergence of two contrasting interpretations of Marxism.
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