Lenin’s Economic Policies and Their Arousal of Opposition Within the Bolshevik Party

554 Words2 Pages

Lenin’s Economic Policies and Their Arousal of Opposition Within the Bolshevik Party

Any government trying to repair its country’s ruined economic state

will undoubtedly have problems and opposition, but the Bolshevik party

had another great burden – to turn Russia into a Marxist state. Lenin

isolated the majority of Russia in 1917 by forming many decrees and

taking various actions, mostly ruled by ideology, for example,

censorship, he took away freedom of speech from every non-Bolshevik

party. These actions were all during the first of Lenin’s economy

policies – State Capitalism.

This policy wasn’t as ideological as the New Economic Policy (NEP)

introduced in 1921 where although economic control was relaxed,

political control was tightened, but it was a start. Lenin couldn’t

make any sweeping revolutionary policies in State Capitalism because

he didn’t yet have enough power. It can be said that because both NEP

and State Capitalism were ruled somewhat by ideology, it created many

enemies for Lenin. NEP, for example, was thought to be a return to

Capitalism and many extreme communists felt betrayed that Lenin had

compromised and allowed things such as NEP men and private trade all

of which reminded them of a capitalist state. In small-scale industry

75% were working privately, not for the state, as communism would

have. Lenin justified his actions by saying “Capitalism exists

alongside socialism”, basically saying that in order to keep control

he had to sacrifice having capitalist aspects in Russia. However,

there were still many angry and betrayed people. On the other hand,

NEP can be seen as successful because the peasants had achieved a

great victory, they could trade privately and make their own profit.

By 1923 the NEP was responsible for 3/4s of all retail trade and in

1926 the economy had almost regained the production rates of 1913.

However, the economic policy which without doubt caused the most

opposition was War Communism. Every single group turned against Lenin,

even including people from his own, towards the end of war communism.

Lenin used oppressive and violent tactics to exert control over Russia

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