At all times and periods of history, the main driving force of revolutions were students and the proletariat. The first ones were driven by an inquisitive mind, maximalism and a desire for change. The proletariat believed that the main cause of their troubles was the state, which oppressed the common people.
Meaning of the word "proletarian"
It is generally accepted that the proletarians are the people who united and overthrew the tsar during the revolutionary events in Russia in 1917. It's true. However, the history of this word is older than most people think.
The word "proletarian" appeared during the Great French bourgeois revolution. It was introduced into use by Simond de Sismondi. He noted that the proletarians are a group of people who do not have the necessary amount of funds for a decent existence. They live one day and do not think about what will happen tomorrow.
Later in Western Europe, all people who belong to the working class and sell their labor power began to be considered proletarians.
Proletarians in Russia
The greatest scale of the movement of the proletarians was noted in Russia in the period 1917-1920. It was a period when the Marxist-Leninisttheory.
Karl Marx, in his book The Principles of Communism, noted that the proletarians are that social class of the population that lives by selling their own labor and does not have capital that can be used.
Over time, small industrialists, artisans and merchants begin to join the proletarians. It is believed that the class of the proletariat is precisely the class that is always opposed to the bourgeois. Karl Marx wrote that for the triumph of justice in the state, the working class must become the hegemon and establish the "dictatorship of the proletariat." The bourgeoisie was to be replaced by the proletarians. Their main goal is to build a communist society, first in Russia, and then around the world.
Global ambitions
The revolutionary events of 1917-1918 ended successfully for the protesters. The monarchy was sent to the dustbin of history. The new leadership and the people faced the task of building communism in the near future. Initially, it was planned to create a communist society in Russia itself, and then throughout the world. The leadership set itself a minimum plan: to build communism throughout the world within ten years. Moreover, it was even planned to cancel the history that was before 1917 and start the countdown again.
"Workers of all countries, unite!" - this is the slogan with which the Communist Party of the USSR sought to unite society within the country with one idea. It was planned that this slogan would becomeglobal. By the way, Friedrich Engels first used it in his Manifesto.
In 1920, at the Communist International, Lenin felt that the phrase needed to be changed. For all peoples, he said: "Proletarians of all countries and oppressed peoples, unite!" This slogan clearly shows that the leadership is focused not only on the internal affairs of the country, but also on the international arena.
Results for the proletarians
Revolutionary events have shown that the proletarians are an active social class that fights for their rights through rallies and demonstrations. The most active movement in the history of the proletariat was in Russia. This is not strange, if we turn to the definition of "proletarians" by Simond de Sismondi. The largest number of poor people who work for hire is observed in Russia.
Proletarians overthrew the monarchy, but did not achieve their own improvement of life. Most of Lenin's promises never came true. Land and production issues remained unresolved. The peasants did not receive the coveted allotments, and the workers - the improvement of working conditions and the reduction of the working day.
