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The
Russian Revolution by Sheila Fitzpatrick
Sheila Fitzpatrick, in her book on the Russian Revolution
portrays the masses as having just such a natural
political and social development. It is in her view
of the Russian Revolution, as a social historian,
that allows for respect to be given to the masses
of people who were fighting for social and political
freedoms. She views the Anarchists as having had the
natural support of the workers and peasants. In her
book The Russian Revolution, Fitzpatrick describes
this movement by the workers themselves. She states
that "...the factory committees took over [the
factories in order] to save the workers from unemployment,
when the owner or manager abandoned the plant or threatened
to close it because it was losing money. As such events
became more common, the definition of workers' control
moved closer to something like workers' self-management."
(Fitzpatrick, p. 54) Fitzpatrick notes that because
of the growing fallout between the workers and the
government, that real grievances were developed and
that a program of self-management became every more
necessary in the eyes of the working classes. Instead
of foreign anarchistic elements conspiring to get
worker support, it was the conditions in Petrograd
that caused the workers to become more militant. Workers
angered by "...the Bolsheviks [who had gained]
influence in the factory committees...[that] there
was an emerging sense in the working class that 'soviet
power' meant that the workers should be sole masters
in the district, the city, and perhaps the country
as a whole...this was closer to anarchism or anarcho-syndicalism
than to Bolshevism, and the Bolshevik leaders did
not in fact share the view that direct workers'democracy
through factory committees and the soviets was a plausible
or desirable alternative to their own concept of party-led
'proletarian dictatorship."(Fitzpatrick, p. 56)
Fitzpatrick makes known form the beginning of her work
that the Russian Revolution to many is seen as being
corrupt and is clearly a controversial subject between
many historians. She points to most important three
primary, recurrent motifs or themes - a modernization
theme, a class theme, and a theme of revolutionary violence
and terror. Fitzpatrick believes that the newly released
information from the historical archives is so dynamic
that each writer and each historian may interpret it
differently. Given the circumstances of the new found
evidence of the Revolution Fitzpatrick works to break
down the political, social and economic forces found
within society at the time of the Revolution in hopes
to gain a greater understanding of the Russian Revolution.
Shelia as a writer and historian also works to make
known the profound connections between the Russian Revolution
and what effect it has on the people and the governmental
system within Russia.
Once Fitzpatrick has provided the reader with the basic
knowledge of the Revolution she then calls upon the
reader to analyze not only the purpose of the Revolution,
but the success of it as well. Fitzpatrick then works
to find the answer if it was really a “Revolution”
at all, in comparison to other national revolutions.
In explaining the modernization theme Fitzpatrick works
to uncover what the Russian Revolution meant not only
to the political structure within Russia but what the
Revolution meant for the people of Russia in regards
to their economic and social success. Fitzpatrick makes
known the role that Lenin and Stalin played during the
Russian Revolution as members of the Bolsheviks. Fitzpatrick
also works to uncover the tragedy and corruption found
within the political system of Russia, while making
known the cost of corruption and violence.
The major themes found within the book are in the form
of three primary forces that led up to the Russian Revolution,
and were ultimately forever changed by the Revolution.
Fitzpatrick believes that the Russian Revolution centers
around three major forces, which are in the form of
political, social and economical. Under these three
forces there are three major themes found within the
Revolution, which are in the form of modernization,
class issues, and violence. Fitzpatrick then breaks
down the themes into various subjects offering an in-depth
look into the Russian Revolution. For within the book
the author discusses various issues found within the
Revolution such as the rise of the NEP, socialism, Stalin’s
Revolution, collectivization, and lastly the Great Purges.
Fitzpatrick concludes the book by discussing the success
of the Revolution, and making known that the Revolution
offered little to the people within Russia, and although
they may have saw a little improvement in their lives
during the Revolution it was short lived. For soon as
Fitzpatrick mentioned Russia would slip back into its
backwardness and digress back to its old ways.
References
Sheila
Fitzpatrick, The Russian Revolution, Oxford University
Press, 1994, p.54-56.
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