The Rise of Communism: From Marx to Lenin

Come to see Lenin’s arrival at Petrograd’s Finland Station in April 1917 as one of the most important turning points in modern history: the establishment of a communist regime after decades of theory. Also, preview the themes you’ll explore in these episodes, and get solid definitions of terms such as communism and socialism.

The revolutionary ideas of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels would rock society and soon affect the lives of millions of people. Here, explore their body of theory (known as “dialectical materialism”) and learn how Marxism offered something different: a tableau of history with starring roles played by the toiling masses and economic forces.

First, unpack the meaning of the revolutionary messages in "The Communist Manifesto" and "Das Kapital." Then, use a basic vocabulary of Marxist concepts to better understand Marx’s model of history and economics. Last, examine how the revolutionary lives of Marx and Engels sought to unify theory with practice.

Investigate the violent upheaval of the Paris Commune in 1871: a political experiment that lasted a mere 10 weeks. The Paris Commune would make Marx one of the most feared and hated men in the world; although it failed, Marx considered it a living example of the “dictatorship of the proletariat.”

In the decades following the death of Marx in 1883, the socialist movement grew, but it also became highly factional over arguments about theory and organizational tactics. In this episode, learn about the rise of political parties in Germany and America, the establishment of the Second International, and the struggle over “revisionism."

Why did a Marxist regime come to power in Russia of all places, especially when Marx considered it an unpromising place for a proletarian revolution? Professor Liulevicius tackles this question and also probes Russia’s revolutionary tradition and the ideas of Georgi Plekhanov, the figure who did the most to bring Marx’s teachings to Russia.