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Primary sourceBookOctober-November 1918

The Proletarian Revolution and the Renegade Kautsky

Vladimir Lenin · October-November 1918

Lenin's 1918 pamphlet attacking German Marxist Karl Kautsky's criticism of Bolshevik rule and defending the dictatorship of the proletariat.

Lenin wrote this pamphlet himself to justify Bolshevik rule against international Marxist criticism.

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Title page of a 1918 Russian book: top reads 'Российская Коммунистическая Партия (большевиков)' with a handwritten inscription in the corner. Center title 'Пролетарская революция и ренегат Каутский' by Н. Ленин (Вл. Ульянов). Bottom lists publisher 'Книгоиздательство Коммунист', Moscow and Petrograd addresses, and the year 1918.
Vladimir Lenin, The Proletarian Revolution and the Renegade Kautsky, 1918. Moscow and Petrograd: Kommunist Publishing House.

About this source

What it is

Lenin wrote this pamphlet in October-November 1918 to respond to Karl Kautsky, a leading German Marxist who had criticized the Bolsheviks' authoritarian methods in his own pamphlet, The Dictatorship of the Proletariat. Lenin accuses Kautsky of betraying true Marxism.

Why it matters

This work captures a major debate among Marxists worldwide about democracy and force in building socialism. It shows Lenin's sharp, combative style of argument and his determination to justify the Soviet government's use of dictatorial power against its opponents, including his former mentor's circle.

Look closer

  • Why does Lenin insist there is no such thing as 'pure democracy'?
  • What does the harsh language Lenin uses against Kautsky reveal about the stakes of this argument?
  • How might someone sympathetic to Kautsky respond to Lenin's claims?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Vladimir Lenin on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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