Leninist society Flashcards
how did Lenin’s Russia change class?
-aristocratic houses were seized by the Bolsheviks to distribute wealth, and turned into communal housing (Kommunalka) for workers
-official abolition of class hierarchy nov. 1917
-former burzhui forced to undertake menial tasks e.g. road sweeping
-agenda of a new ‘socialist man’ who was publicly engaged and committed to the community
-active campaign against ‘class enemies’
how significant was the proletarianism under Lenin?
-brief spell of ‘worker power’ in the early years of Bolshevik rule
-however labour discipline was tightened, internal passports issued during civil war to stop workers leaving their jobs
-by 1921 workers could be imprisoned/ shot if they failed to meet targets
how did life for women change under Lenin?
-november 1917 = decree against sex discrimination, women given property owning rights
-divorce made easier + less expensive
-1920 = legalised abortion
-free contraceptive advice
-women given the right to work and expected to work
-BUT gave them the double burden of managing the household and having a job
-girls and boys given equal education rights
how did education change in Lenin’s russia?
-seen as crucial to create a socialist society
-set up the commisariat of the enlightenment which provided free education for all
-new secondary schools combined general education with vocational training
-from a young age, taught that what Lenin was doing was pure marxism
how did Lenin’s rule involve young people?
-young communist league formed in 1918 (became youth division of the party)
-1926 = renamed the Komsomol, for those aged 10-28
-only 6% of those eligible joined
-taught communist values
-however difficult to unify the peasant youth and urban youth
how was religion dealt with by Lenin?
-Lenin initially didn’t see the church as a threat and allowed freedom of religious worship because he acknowledged that there was an orthodox majority in Russia and he wanted to gain popularity
HOWEVER
-role of church within state was reduced e.g. church lands seized, official separation of church from state in 1918
-1921 = RE teaching in schools was banned
-once the civil war almost over, the Bolsheviks could increase their campaign against religion
-during civil war many priests died from starvation as they were given the smallest amounts of rations, however the peasants didn’t care as propaganda made priests out to be ‘repressors’
-Komsomol ransacked churches
actions to change society that could be argued Lenin was motivated to do by pragmatism rather than ideology:
-legalising abortion - wanting to keep more women in the workforce - useful for society
-contraceptive advice - same reason
-vocational training in schools - creating more useful workers of society
