Downward to Darkness

Overview

In lecture five, we study the Russian Revolution's roots in Marxist philosophy, examining how Marx's materialism reduced ethics to tactics serving class interests and identified human essence with production. We trace Lenin's radical departure from Marx's economic determinism, implementing totalitarian rule through systematic terror that killed hundreds of thousands. The discussion highlights fundamental problems with communist theory including problems of motivation, the emergence of new ruling elites, and economic collapse that forced Lenin to partially restore private property before his death.