Marxism-Leninism
Marxism-Leninism is the version of Marxism developed by Vladimir Lenin and his successors. As such, it formed the ideological foundation for the world Communist movement centering on the Soviet. In the twentieth century, all nations calling themselves Communist, and most Communist parties in other nations, were founded on Marxist-Leninist principles.
The core ideological features of Marxism-Leninism are the belief in the necessity for a vanguard party to lead the working class in the violent overthrow of capitalism through communist revolution, to be followed by a dictatorship of the proletariat as the first stage of moving towards communism. Communist parties subscribed to the teachings and legacy of Karl Marx and Frederick Engels (Marxism), as interpreted by of V. I. Lenin.
The term Marxism-Leninism was most often used by those who believed that Lenin's legacy was successfully carried forward by Joseph Stalin, although Trotskyist and Maoists are also technically Marxist-Leninists. The term was also used by some Communists who repudiated Stalin, such as the supporters of Nikita Khrushchev. Important contemporary Marxist-Leninist regimes today include Fidel Castro's Cuba. China and North Korea have each made sought to distance themselves somewhat from Marxism Leninism but have not repudiated the basic principles of the Communist revolutions that created these governments. Several non non-governmental political movements also still consider themselves as Marxist-Leninist today.
History of the term
Lenin himself never used the term "Leninism," nor did he refer to his views as "Marxism-Leninism." However, his ideas diverged from classical Marxist theory on several important points (see the articles on Marxism and Leninism for more information). Bolshevik communists saw these differences as advancements of Marxism made by Lenin. After Lenin's death, his ideology and contributions to Marxist theory were termed "Marxism-Leninism," or sometimes only "Leninism." Marxism-Leninism soon became the official name for the ideology of the Comintern and of communist parties around the world.
Within 5 years of Lenin's death, Joseph Stalin completed his rise to power in the Soviet Union. During the period of Stalin's rule in the Soviet Union, Marxism-Leninism was proclaimed the official ideology of the state.
Whether Stalin's practices actually followed the principles of Marx and Lenin is still a subject of debate amongst historians and political scientists. Trotskyists in particular believe that Stalinism contradicted authentic Marxism and Leninism, and they intitially used the term "Bolshevik-Leninism" to describe their own ideology of anti-Stalinist and anti-Maoist communism.
After the Sino-Soviet split, the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China each claimed to be the sole intellectual heir to Marxism-Leninism. In China, the claim that Mao had "adapted Marxism-Leninism to Chinese conditions" evolved into the idea that he had updated it in a fundamental way applying to the world as a whole; consequently, the term "Marxism-Leninism-Mao Zedong Thought" (commonly known as Maoism) was increasingly used to describe the official Chinese state ideology as well as the ideological basis of parties around the world who sympathized with the Communist Party of China. Following the death of Mao, American Maoists associated with the Revolutionary Communist Party (USA) subsequently coined the term Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, arguing that Maoism was a more advanced stage of Marxism. Many parties today believe that the current leadership of China has abandoned Maoism.
Following the Sino-Albanian split, a small but substantial portion of Marxist-Leninists, such as Alliance Marxist-Leninist and to a lesser extent Ray O. Light Group, in the US, began to downplay or repudiate the role of Mao Zedong in the International Communist Movement in favor of the Party of Labor of Albania and a stricter adherence to Stalin.
In North Korea, Marxism-Leninism was officially superseded in 1977 by Juche, in which concepts of class and class struggle, in other words Marxism itself, play no significant role. However, the government is still sometimes referred to as Marxist-Leninist - or, more commonly, Stalinist - due to its political and economic structure (see History of North Korea).
The other three communist states existing today - Cuba, Vietnam and Laos - hold Marxism-Leninism as their official ideology, although they give it different interpretations in terms of practical policy.
Marxism-Leninism in the Soviet Union
Marxism-Leninism in the Soviet Union was a selected mix of the prolific writings of Marx and Lenin, in addition to inclusions made by Soviet political authorities. The additions made by subsequent Soviet ideologists was explained as “creative application” of the new situations arising in the world. Its further explained by the emphasis in Soviet Marxism-Leninism against both dogmatism (which would mean strictly adhering to Marx and Lenin even if objective conditions are different) and revisionism i.e refuting the basic principles of Marxism-Leninism. It was the official ideology of the Soviet Union, and the most influential strain of Marxism.[1]Marxism-Leninism changed slightly with each successive era of Party leaders. For example Marxism-Leninism of the Khrushchev era was strongly against the establishment of personality cults like that of the Stalin era, which it described as alien to Leninism. It is largely accepted that Marxism-Leninism was ended in the Soviet Union, by the openness of criticism and rejection of basic tenets of the ideology by Gorbachev's Perestroika and Glasnost[2]
Current usage
Most communist parties continue to regard Marxism-Leninism as their basic ideology, although many have modified it to adapt to new political conditions. Several communist parties, especially those previously associated with Eurocommunism, have distanced themselves from the concept of 'Marxism-Leninism' and in many cases omitted it from their official documents. Some have started identifying themselves as 'Marxist, Leninist' or 'Marxist and Leninist' rather than 'Marxist-Leninist'. Still others use the term 'Marxist-Leninism' to imply that that there is another 'Leninism' that is not Marxist. The difference in such cases is that the historical connotation of 'Marxism-Leninism' is avoided.
In party names, the appellation 'Marxist-Leninist' is normally used by a communist party who wishes to distinguish itself from some other (and presumably 'revisionist') communist party in the same country. Most often, parties who place the term 'Marxist-Leninist' in their official name are those originating from the anti-revisionist tradition, such as Maoist or Hoxhaist groups.
Popular confusion abounds concerning the complex terminology describing the various schools of Marxist-derived thought. The appellation 'Marxist-Leninist' is often used by those not familiar with communist ideology in any detail (e.g. many newspapers and other media) as a synonym for any kind of Marxism.
See also
- Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist)
- Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist)
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