V. I.

Lenin

Setting: Tsarism in St. Petersburg struck down, the autocratic government
overthrown—struck down but not utterly destroyed, not killed, not annihilated , not extirpated.

Theprovisional revolutionary government appeals to the people. Workers and
peasants taketheinitiative.

Complete freedom. The people organise their own lives. The government programme=full republican liberties,
peasant committees for the complete reform of agrarian relations. The
Programme of the Social-Democratic Party isathingstandingbyitself.

Social-Democrats in the provisional government =people delegated, commissioned by the Social-Democratic Party .

Next—the Constituent Assembly. If the people have risen, they

... [1] may (even though not immediately) find themselves in the
majority (peasants and workers). Ergo , the revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat and the peasantry.

Franticresistance of evil forces. Civil war infullsweep—annihilation of tsarism.

Organisationof the proletariat grows, propaganda and agitation of the
Social-Democrats increases ten thousandfold—all the government
printing-presses, etc., etc. “Mit der Gründlichkeit der geschichtlichen Aktion wird auch der Umfang der Masse zunehmen, deren Aktion sie ist .” [2]

Thepeasantry takes all agrarian relations, all the land, into
its own hands.

Thennationalisation becomes a fact.

Tremendousgrowth of productive forces—the entire rural intelligentsia,
all technical knowledge, is brought into action to increase agricultural
production, to get rid of fettering influences (uplifters, Narodniks, etc.,
etc.).... Gigantic development of capitalist progress....

War:the fort keeps changing hands. Either the bourgeoisie overthrows
the revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat and the peasantry, or this
dictatorship sets Europe aflame, and then...?

Ifwe are to consider the question of revolutionary dictatorship from the
standpoint of Marxism, we shall have to reduce it to an analysis of the
struggle of the classes .

Ergo ,what major social forces should be taken into account? Ordre de bataille ?

(α) The bureaucratic, military, and Court elements stand for
absolutism plus the unenlightened elements among the people (a
rapidly disintegrating conglomerate, yesterday all-powerful, tomorrow
powerless). (Dynastic and other conflicts within inevitable.)

Degreeof organisation very high—maximum (β) The more or less big, moderately-liberal bourgeoisie.

((Here I include the liberal landlords, the top financiers, the merchants,
manufacturers, etc., etc. This=σ lords and masters of a bourgeois country. “Can do anything”. ))

Degreeof organisation very slight

Conflictsbetween the groupings inevitable; but all stand for a Constitution even now, and still more so tomorrow.

Ideologicalleaders—in abundance, from among the officials, landlords, and
journalists.

(γ) The petty-bourgeois and peasant section. Tens of millions.

The“people” par excellence .

Degreeof organisation —minimum

Greateststate of benightedness and disorganisation.

Theirplight most desperate, they have most to gain directly
from the revolution. The greatest instability (to day—for the
revolution, tomorrow—for “law and order” after slight improvements).

De mocracy. Ideological leaders—a great number of democratic intellectuals. The Socialist-Revolutionary
“type”.

(δ) The proletariat.

Veryhigh level of organisation, and discipline

Revolutionary-minded. Critical attitude towards the petty bourgeoisie. Has
fewer ideological leaders than all the others—only the
Social-Democratic intelligentsia and the educated Social-Democratic
workers. Compared with the preceding groups numerically very much weaker, but

Kampffähigkeit [3] very much stronger.

Objectof the struggle = Republic (including all democratic liberties, the minimumprogramme and far-reaching social reforms).

α—absolutelyagainst.

β— for a Constitution, against the
Republic (½ and ½). ((Bargaining.))

γ—ina revolutionary moment (not firmly) for the Republic
((the unstable elements of the struggle)).

δ—whollyand entirely for the Republic.

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Notes:
[1]
One word illegible.— Ed .

[2]
“As the thoroughness of the historic action increases, the magnitude
of the mass whose cause it represents will also increase.” [4] — Ed .

[3]
Fighting capacity.— Ed.

[4]
See Marx and Engels, The Holy Family, or Critique of Critical Critique , Moscow, 1956, p. 410.