Publication Details

Abstract

Revolution procedes in such a way that it incessantly turns to itself critically: it applies its forms as passing elements and claims development to be its own self-evolution and overcoming of its own bearers. If its forces are incapable of achieving this, then it does not solve conflicts as it ought to, but keeps them up and feeds on them: it changes revolution into a permanent institution and preserves in it its old form. These forces, as is known from the so-called deformation or deviation of revolution, build up forms of social organizations as unchangeable frontiers of its life. They impart a contradictory content to the original revolutionary forms, estrange themselves from the people and the people from them, and in order that a relation be preserved, it must be induced artificially. The efforts to replace objective relations by artificial interventions gave rise to systems standing above the people. Outwardly they are represented by bureaucracy and a rigid dogmatism as the political frontiers of consiciousness. In these, people and things make a show of qualities with which they are otherwise not endowed either by nature or society, for what the relations lose in their real form, they acquire in an unreal one.' A fetishization of institutions and cult of personality are a sort of superstructure of distorted relations, but not their basis. Personality cult is, before all else, a cult of personal power derived from anonymous power. Hence, the people must subdue this power and all the forms of life so that they, too, might perceive them in their natural shape and make use of them freely. Deviations are the product of liberating endeavours on the part of the masses at various stages of development and they too, have their positive meaning. The complex progress of the masses represents the way in which revolution mediates movement on all sides, takes advantage of diverse situations and attains its wealth. Revolution does not exculde conflicts, rather it concentrates them, but differs from crisis in that it provides a solution to them. The peculiarity of revolution at the actual stage is in the fact that it has now to set about its task in its full extent, to set free all the forces of the society for a progressive development and at the same time thereby to call up all their internal contradictions and solve them as its own.