How did Lenin’s Use of Propaganda between 1917-1924 influence the Working Class of
the USSR?
, 1. Introduction
Russia had been under the Romanov dynasty from 1613 until the Russian Revolutions
of 1917. The revolution consisted of two stages: February Revolution, which ended the
Tsarist autocracy, and the October Revolution, which made the Bolsheviks, ruled by Vladimir
Lenin take charge over the new Soviet Russia that they created. (Zapata, 2024).
The 1917 Revolution had many complex and varied causes. According to Longley
(2024), the Great War (1914-1918) and Russia’s autocratic rule were seen as major causes for
the Russian Revolution to occur, but there were other factors that rose such as a result of a
variety of economic, political, social, and military circumstances. Tsar Nicholas II played a
key role as one of the ‘long-term causes’ for the Revolution. His resistance to the political
and industrial reforms that the rest of the world was already going through, created struggles
and caused slow developments in Russia. The Tsar’s repressive laws, poor working
environments, and unequal distribution of land angered many workers and farmers. Delaying
the industrialization process caused overpopulation, low wages, and very unhealthy
conditions, which started protests such as the Bloody Sunday massacre in 1905. The 1905
Revolution in Russia was another significant indirect cause for the 1917 Revolution to start
(Farhad, 2015).
According to Abramitzky (n.d.), Vladimir Lenin, born in 1870, was a dedicated
Marxist. He says that Lenin believed in a centralized party of intellectuals who were
disciplined enough to guide the working class toward revolution, as he did not believe the
working class was capable of a revolution themselves (Domenach, 1951). Lenin implemented
policies such as taking over industries and reforming laws about land, but these produced
poor financial consequences and clashes within the USSR. He spread his ideology,
“Leninism,” to achieve his goal of the socialist state, which was Marxism but tailored
according to Russia’s needs as an agrarian and illiterate society. To spread this ideology
throughout Russia he attracted people’s attention through propaganda. Lenin and the
Bolsheviks incorporated visual elements and short slogans for Russia's illiterate people,
which consolidated their power.
This study will analyze the question “How did Lenin’s Use of Propaganda between
1917-1924 influence the Working Class of the USSR?” My paper argues regarding Lenin’s
use of propaganda and how it was crucial in simplifying complex ideas such as Leninism and
creating a collective identity among the working class of the USSR. My paper focuses on
how the use of propaganda helped the Bolsheviks consolidate their power during and after the
Revolutions of 1917. My chosen topic is academically relevant as it analyzes how the use of
the USSR?
, 1. Introduction
Russia had been under the Romanov dynasty from 1613 until the Russian Revolutions
of 1917. The revolution consisted of two stages: February Revolution, which ended the
Tsarist autocracy, and the October Revolution, which made the Bolsheviks, ruled by Vladimir
Lenin take charge over the new Soviet Russia that they created. (Zapata, 2024).
The 1917 Revolution had many complex and varied causes. According to Longley
(2024), the Great War (1914-1918) and Russia’s autocratic rule were seen as major causes for
the Russian Revolution to occur, but there were other factors that rose such as a result of a
variety of economic, political, social, and military circumstances. Tsar Nicholas II played a
key role as one of the ‘long-term causes’ for the Revolution. His resistance to the political
and industrial reforms that the rest of the world was already going through, created struggles
and caused slow developments in Russia. The Tsar’s repressive laws, poor working
environments, and unequal distribution of land angered many workers and farmers. Delaying
the industrialization process caused overpopulation, low wages, and very unhealthy
conditions, which started protests such as the Bloody Sunday massacre in 1905. The 1905
Revolution in Russia was another significant indirect cause for the 1917 Revolution to start
(Farhad, 2015).
According to Abramitzky (n.d.), Vladimir Lenin, born in 1870, was a dedicated
Marxist. He says that Lenin believed in a centralized party of intellectuals who were
disciplined enough to guide the working class toward revolution, as he did not believe the
working class was capable of a revolution themselves (Domenach, 1951). Lenin implemented
policies such as taking over industries and reforming laws about land, but these produced
poor financial consequences and clashes within the USSR. He spread his ideology,
“Leninism,” to achieve his goal of the socialist state, which was Marxism but tailored
according to Russia’s needs as an agrarian and illiterate society. To spread this ideology
throughout Russia he attracted people’s attention through propaganda. Lenin and the
Bolsheviks incorporated visual elements and short slogans for Russia's illiterate people,
which consolidated their power.
This study will analyze the question “How did Lenin’s Use of Propaganda between
1917-1924 influence the Working Class of the USSR?” My paper argues regarding Lenin’s
use of propaganda and how it was crucial in simplifying complex ideas such as Leninism and
creating a collective identity among the working class of the USSR. My paper focuses on
how the use of propaganda helped the Bolsheviks consolidate their power during and after the
Revolutions of 1917. My chosen topic is academically relevant as it analyzes how the use of
