The Dilemmas of Lenin

Posted on 17 September 2018 by Tariq Ali

On the centenary of the Russian Revolution, Tariq Ali paints an illuminating portrait of Lenin At the end of his life, Lenin wrote we didn t know everything , acknowledging the dilemmas he faced on the road to revolution in 1917 and beyond In this unusual exploration of the crises that Lenin overcame, the decisions he made, and actions that he took, Tariq Ali reveals an insightful political portrait of this most exemplary leader From the first stirrings of revolutionary fervour, Lenin sought the right answer to a series of dilemmas that he faced and that still resonate with us today Is terrorism ever a useful tactic Can imperial wars ever be supported What sort of political party do we need What is the moral justification for seizing power How does one overcome the burden of history What role does friendship or love play in revolution How do you establish a legacy that lasts Ali reveals that no other modern thinker than Lenin has better understood, norclearly articulated, the need to change the world But do Lenin s ideas, as expressed in his actions and his political writings, still have any significance for us In this centenary year of the Russian Revolution, this book raises important questions related to political representation and the popular institutions necessary to challenge capitalism today. Best Download [ The Dilemmas of Lenin ] By [ Tariq Ali ] – kino-fada.fr Tariq Ali again, cashing in on the Russian Revolution centenary and people like me who buy like every f book VERSO publishes, I suppose.So The dilemmas of Lenin 2017 , ey If you already read A LOT about Lenin and the history of the Russian Revolutionbroadly, then there s very little new analysis or insight in the book There s also very little engagement with Lenin s work itself and it s not really trying to be a biography either The dilemmas refer to the external circumstances, ob Tariq Ali again, cashing in on the Russian Revolution centenary and people like me who buy like every f book VERSO publishes, I suppose.So The dilemmas of Lenin 2017 , ey If you already read A LOT about Lenin and the history of the Russian Revolutionbroadly, then there s very little new analysis or insight in the book There s also very little engagement with Lenin s work itself and it s not really trying to be a biography either The dilemmas refer to the external circumstances, objective conditions, I suppose, e.g, the backward nature of post feudal Russia, the first world war and imperialist interests, failed revolutions in Western Europe etc It s the kind of book you wanna give the smug assholes who know shit all about lenin or socialism but love to say things like look at Russia Look at how socialism worked for them Like, yeah, maybe socialism failed because it s kind of tricky to build a socialist society in a world dominated by imperialism and capitalism And maybe...Agree with the general criticism that the book is very digressive, but don t consider that a bad thing Manages to provide a lot of context for the life of Lenin, while also pontificating on Bismarck s dietary practices, Wilson Woodrow s dishonesty, free love in the English Revolution, what a piece of shit Reagan was, etc etc Kept thinking of it as a centenary companion piece to Mieville s October Stray thoughts Lenin s brother Sasha was an idiot The cops arrested him but lost his manifesto Agree with the general criticism that the book is very digressive, but don t consider that a bad thing Manages to provide a lot of context for the life of Lenin, while also pontificating on Bismarck s dietary practices, Wilson Woodrow s dishonesty, free love in the English Revolution, what a piece of shit Reagan was, etc etc Kept thinking of it as a centenary companion piece to Mieville s October Stray thoughts Lenin s brother Sasha was an idiot The cops arrested him but lost his manifesto and he re wrote it for them Dumb The Tsar said, This is the writing not even of a madman, but a pure idiot He wasn t wrong We should resurrect Soviet ...Some fascinating discussions of both well known and neglected aspects of revolutionary history, a particular highlight being the chapter on military policy This is also the first account I ve read of Lenin s intense, beautiful, and tragic relationship with Inessa Armand for a long time It treats the relationship in the mature, sympathetic, and sensitive manner it deserves, while also locating their affair firmly in the sexual cultures, politics, and moralities of Bolshevism The book doesn t s Some fascinating discussions of both well known and neglected aspects of revolutionary history, a particular highlight being the chapter on military policy This is also the first account I ve read of Lenin s intense, beautiful, and tragic relationship with Inessa Armand for a long time It treats the relationship in the mature, sympathetic, and sensitive manner it deserves, while also locating their affair firmly in the sexual cultures, politics, and moralities of Bolshevism The book doesn t se...Ali s writing here is excellent, even if this is in no way an exhaustive biography of Lenin It s very wide angle there are times at which the titular subject doesn t even feel like he s the focal point of the book Still, other than a slight feeling of mismatch between title and content, that wound up being a strengththan a weakness You do get plenty of deeper insight into Lenin along the way, but you also get to go behind the scenes of late Tsarist early Soviet Russia from a bunch of di Ali s writing here is excellent, even if this is in no way an exhaustive biography of Lenin It s very wide angle there are times at which the titular subject doesn t even feel like he s the focal point of the book Still, other than a slight feeling of mismatch between title and content, that wound up being a strengththan a weakness You do get plenty of deeper insight into Lenin along the way, but you also get to go behind the scenes of late Tsarist early Soviet Russia from a bunch of different angle...I had a hard time readingthan a few pages at a time of Tariq Ali s The Dilemmas of Lenin Terrorism, War, Empire, Love, Revolution, but that s not because it was bad It is, rather, because it was quite good, containing a lot of important and valuable information, but I started reading it while I was sick, which is not generally the optimal time to try to be learning important things about history and politics and whatever I should have just read some nice lighthearted fiction instead, b I had a hard time readingthan a few pages at a time of Tariq Ali s The Dilemmas of Lenin Terrorism, War, Empire, Love, Revolution, but that s not because it was bad It is, rather, because it was quite good, containing a lot of important and valuable information, but I started reading it while I was sick, which is not generally the optimal time to try to be learning important things about history and politics and whatever I should have just read some nice lighthearted fiction instead, but I wanted to finish this book before October was over, because I m pretentious like that.Anyway I m not really smart enough to write much of a review here my background on the Russian Revolution is still very thin, even after reading October earlier in the year although thank God I did or I might have been really lost Dilemmas of Lenin deals with a wide range of subjects, frequently wandering away from Lenin s personal histor...An unusual defence of Lenin, filled with many digressions and side notes typical of Ali s style And for those familiar with Lenin, it sin these digressions that the interest lies Much of the political content has been argued by figures like Deutcher, Liebman or Le Blanc and there s a decided trend not to engage in any of the recent discussions initiated by people like Lih So, a good is somewhat rambling introduction to Lenin A little of something for everyone, but not of the same s An unusual defence of Lenin, filled with many digressions and side notes typical of Ali s style And for those familiar with Lenin, it sin these digressions that the interest lies Much of the political content has been argued by figures like Deutcher, Liebman or Le Blanc and there s a decided trend not to engage in any of the recent discussions initiated by people like Lih So, a good is some...As a huge newbie to the history of the russian revolution, and european history in general, this book was really useful to me It provided intellectual, social, and political context for the revolution It s not really about Lenin, though he is a central figure It is digressive in the extreme, almost distracted in its structure Despite this, it makes for very engaging reading I would recommend to anyone looking to learnabout the intellectual and political currents that shaped lenin and As a huge newbie to the history of the russian revolution, and european history in general, this book was really useful to me It provided intellectual, social, and political context for the revolution It s not really about Lenin, though he is a central figure It is ...I am not really sure how many stars to give this book, but there enough parts which deserve five stars that I am going to do that for the whole thing No one need tell me that the author is an old Trotsky supporter Though I do not consider myself in any way, shape, or form a Trotskyite, the hurling around of that epitaph means little to me Those who think accusing someone of that ends an argument are just displaying their own lack of political depth Trotsky was not alway wrong and neither are I am not really sure how many stars to give this book, but there enough parts which deserve five stars that I am going to do that for the whole thing No one need tell me that the author is an old Trotsky supporter Though I do not consider myself in any way, shape, or form a Trotskyite, the hurling around of that epitaph means little to me Those who think accusing someone of that ends an argument are just displaying their own lack of political depth Trotsky was not alway wrong and neither are those who link themselves to him I know I haven t said anything about why I liked the book, mostly because it would likely just lead to some meaningless arguments that I have already had too often in my life You can read it and decide what to take from it for yourself Keep in mind that just as I don ....such a wonderful book, on multiple levels the most important Tariq Ali did not miss the gender aspect of the whole story, and here it s not a mere addition or decoration, but a constitutive part of the Russian Revolution.

English
17 September 2018

Tariq Ali