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Trotsky, the Left Opposition and the Rise of Stalinism: Theory and Practice

Trotsky, the Left Opposition and the Rise of Stalinism: Theory and Practice Historical Materialism , volume 14:3 (175–206) © Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2006 Also available online – www.brill.nl Interventions John Eric Marot Trotsky, the Left Opposition and the Rise of Stalinism: Theory and Practice Introduction This essay proposes to re-evaluate the political character and historical significance of the Left Opposition through a detailed assessment of Tony Cliff’s Trotsky, 1923–1927: Fighting the Rising Stalinist Bureaucracy and Trotsky, 1927–1940: The Darker the Night the Brighter the Star , the third and fourth volumes respectively of his Trotsky biography. In the pages that follow, I argue that Trotsky and the Left Opposition did not oppose Stalin’s policies of forced industrialisation and collectivisation. Worse, they failed to support worker and peasant resistance to these policies. In fact, the political programme and worldview of the Left Opposition objectively contributed to the formation and consolidation ‘from above’ of a new class society in the critical period of 1927–33. The visceral reaction of many Marxists and perhaps all Trotskyists to anyone brazen or foolish enough to declare the traditional understanding of the Left Opposition’s historical role incorrect might be to HIMA 14,3_f7_175-206II 8/11/06 3:15 PM Page 175 176 • John Eric Marot 1 Cliff 1993, p. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Historical Materialism Brill

Trotsky, the Left Opposition and the Rise of Stalinism: Theory and Practice

Marot, John Eric
Historical Materialism , Volume 14 (3): 175 – Jan 1, 2006
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Publisher
Brill
Copyright
© 2006 Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands
ISSN
1465-4466
eISSN
1569-206X
DOI
10.1163/156920606778531743
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Historical Materialism , volume 14:3 (175–206) © Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2006 Also available online – www.brill.nl Interventions John Eric Marot Trotsky, the Left Opposition and the Rise of Stalinism: Theory and Practice Introduction This essay proposes to re-evaluate the political character and historical significance of the Left Opposition through a detailed assessment of Tony Cliff’s Trotsky, 1923–1927: Fighting the Rising Stalinist Bureaucracy and Trotsky, 1927–1940: The Darker the Night the Brighter the Star , the third and fourth volumes respectively of his Trotsky biography. In the pages that follow, I argue that Trotsky and the Left Opposition did not oppose Stalin’s policies of forced industrialisation and collectivisation. Worse, they failed to support worker and peasant resistance to these policies. In fact, the political programme and worldview of the Left Opposition objectively contributed to the formation and consolidation ‘from above’ of a new class society in the critical period of 1927–33. The visceral reaction of many Marxists and perhaps all Trotskyists to anyone brazen or foolish enough to declare the traditional understanding of the Left Opposition’s historical role incorrect might be to HIMA 14,3_f7_175-206II 8/11/06 3:15 PM Page 175 176 • John Eric Marot 1 Cliff 1993, p.

Journal

Historical Materialism – Brill

Published: Jan 1, 2006

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