Referencing Vladimir Lenin, "What is To Be Done?" (1902)

Why do you think it was left to the “bourgeois intelligentsia” to transform the quest for working class rights into a philosophy?

Do you think anyone in the aristocracy could do that? Do you think they would have any understanding of what life was like for those who worked for their livings?

To understand why Vladimir Lenin believed that the "bourgeois intelligentsia" played a crucial role in transforming the quest for working-class rights into a philosophy, we need to look at the historical context of the time and Lenin's perspective.

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Russia was going through significant social and political changes. The majority of the Russian population consisted of peasants and workers who were subjected to harsh conditions, exploitation, and political repression. The industrial working class was growing steadily, and their struggles for better working conditions and rights were becoming more pronounced.

Lenin, as a prominent figure in the Russian Marxist movement, sought to mobilize the working class and bring about a revolution that would overthrow the oppressive Tsarist regime and establish a socialist society. However, Lenin observed that the working class by itself was not immediately equipped with the necessary political consciousness and organization to achieve these goals.

Lenin argued that the working class, due to their daily struggle for survival, was primarily concerned with immediate economic demands and lacked a comprehensive understanding of the underlying structures of society. In his view, the working class needed the guidance and ideological influence of the "bourgeois intelligentsia" – intellectuals from the middle and upper classes who had education and intellectual capacity.

According to Lenin, the bourgeois intelligentsia, through their education and exposure to philosophical, economic, and political theories, had the ability to comprehend the wider political and social forces at play. They could connect the specific struggles of the working class to broader theories and philosophies, converting their demands into a comprehensive revolutionary philosophy.

By doing this, the bourgeois intelligentsia, who shared the revolutionary spirit and sympathized with the working class, could act as a bridge between the working class and the revolutionary ideas of Marxism. They could help articulate the working class's grievances, educate them about their true class interests, and guide them towards a revolutionary consciousness.

In Lenin's view, the working class alone could not fully develop this revolutionary consciousness on their own due to limited access to education, ideological resources, and time for intellectual pursuits. It was the bourgeois intelligentsia's role to help shape and elevate the theoretical and philosophical understanding of the working class struggle, thus turning it into a coherent revolutionary ideology capable of transforming society.

It's important to note that Lenin's views were shaped by the particular circumstances of his time and the specific conditions in Russia. Different socialist thinkers and revolutionaries might have different perspectives on the role of the intelligentsia and the working class in the transformation of revolutionary philosophy.