Schusterman - Successful attempt of extremist group due to persuasion of support of soviets

The October Revolution was a successful attempt of an extremist group to rise to power due to the persuasion of the support of the socialists. Lenin and the Bolsheviks used techniques that did not represent the needs of the bourgeoisie, but they did appeal to the needs of the peasants and workers. With this group of peoples support the Bolsheviks were then able to successfully gain rule over Russia.

One technique Lenin used to represent the wants of the peasants but not the upper class was the redistribution of land. Lenin took land from the bourgeoisie and gave it to peasant-soldiers. "Since July, Lenin had promised to give them land 'without any payment,'" (3 Book Source). This was not at all fair for land to be taken away from the upper class who owned it and did nothing to deserve the land to be taken away from them, but it was a strategic method Lenin used that helped the lower class support him. He also supported the peasants by pulling Russia out of the war, which the lower class had been begging for during the Tsar and Provisional Governments' rule. Lenin did this because it was another opportunity for him to show the workers that he had their best interest at heart. "On January, in an article published in both Pravda and Izvestia, Lenin announced that he was prepared to use terror in 'the interests of workers, soldiers, and peasants' and to do what was necessary 'for the good of the revolution," (3 Book Source). His true motive for doing these things was to gain their support and THEN he would be able to rule Russia however he pleased, but this did not include giving the upper class anything because that was not what was necessary for him to come to power.

Lenin knew that to be able to gain complete rule over Russia he would not only have to gain the soviets' support, but also restrict the amount of power the upper class had because if they were given a chance to choose or speak out about what ruler they wanted, he would have no chance of rising to power. Before even gaining power he produced his April Thesis, which was a list of ten promises or plans he would fulfill if he became ruler. Number five stated, "Not a parliamentary republic - but a republic of Soviets of Workers', Agricultural Labourers' and Peasants' Deputies throughout the land, from top to bottom," (4 April Thesis). Lenin clearly stated that he would not hold elections because he would pick whom he wanted to rule with him and he made it very clear that he intended on his rule being a dictatorship. Lenin didn't want to hold elections because only the bourgeoisie was able to vote and they would never pick him. In November of 1917 the Constituent Assembly forced Lenin to hold elections of which, "The Bolsheviks got 24 percent of the vote, well below the 38 percent gained by the Social Revolutionary Party. Lenin minimized the results and claimed they were unrepresentative of the 'people's will,'" (3 Book Source). Once in office, "The first civil liberty to be excised like a diseased limb was freedom of expression." Lenin did this because the bourgeoisie was mainly in control of the press and he didn't want anti-revolution publications to be exposed to the public. Posters were produced by the Bolsheviks that staed, "Long Live the Red Army!," and, "Proletarians of All Countries, Unite!," (5 Website). By restricting the bourgeoisie press and increasing his own propaganda it appeared that far more people were supportive of him. He also limited people speaking out against the war by creating the Cheka, the secret police. "They defended the Cheka's ruthless methods," and, "He told officials to take hostages from among the bourgeoisie and to make these people 'answer with their lives' if requisitioned grain was not delivered," (3 Book Source). This was an extreme move to rise to power because not only was Lenin restricting their abilities to speak out against him, he also began to kill them solely so there would be less people to have to worry about that were against him. Concentration camps also held people that spoke out against the revolution of which, "Lenin personally signed the execution lists, thereby inventing another tradition that was carried on under Stalin," (3 Book Source). To the lower class Lenin seemed like a savior, but to the upper class he seemed as relentless as the Tsar. This was especially apparent when, "The Leninists were shooting at unarmed civilians, and even some supporters were quick to point to the uncanny resemblance to the tsarist atrocities on the infamous Bloody Sunday of 1905," (3 Book Source). This parallel serves as a representation of Lenin purely caring about his selfish neds to rise to power instead of addressing the needs of all people in Russia.

While most of the evidence does point to Lenin's attempts solely being the result of the Bolsheviks doing what they strategically needed to do to rise to power, they also helped some people as part of this process. Although giving the peasants land and pulling out of World War I was to gain support of the soviets for the Bolsheviks to rise to power it also did truly represent what they wanted. Even though the motives for helping these people were skewed the efforts should still be acknowledged nonetheless.

Source 5 - http://www.europefront.com/news/336/soviet_propaganda_posters.html