Trotsky and the Problem of Soviet Bureaucracy

514 Pages·2014·1.923 MB·English

by  Thomas M. Twiss

Trotsky and the Problem of Soviet Bureaucracy
Historical Materialism
Book Series
Editorial Board
Sébastien Budgen (Paris)
Steve Edwards (London)
Marcel van der Linden (Amsterdam)
Peter Thomas (London)
VOLUME 67
The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/hm
Trotsky and the Problem of
Soviet Bureaucracy
By
Thomas M. Twiss
LEIDEN | BOSTON
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Twiss, Thomas M.
 Trotsky and the problem of Soviet bureaucracy / by Thomas M. Twiss.
  pages cm. — (Historical materialism book series, ISSN 1570-1522 ; volume 67)
 Includes bibliographical references and index.
 ISBN 978-90-04-26952-1 (hardback : acid-free paper) — ISBN 978-90-04-26953-8 (e-book)
1. Trotsky, Leon, 1879–1940—Political and social views. 2. Bureaucracy—Soviet Union—History.
3. Socialism—Soviet Union—History. 4. Socialism—Philosophy. 5. Soviet Union—History—Revolution,
1917–1921. 6. Soviet Union—Politics and government—1917–1936. I. Title.
 DK254.T6T87 2014
 947.084092--dc23
2014004091
This publication has been typeset in the multilingual ‘Brill’ typeface. With over 5,100 characters covering
Latin, ipa, Greek, and Cyrillic, this typeface is especially suitable for use in the humanities.
For more information, please see brill.com/brill-typeface.
ISSN 1570-1522
isbn 978 90 04 26952 1 (hardback)
isbn 978 90 04 26953 8 (e-book)
Copyright 2014 by Koninklijke Brill nv, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Koninklijke Brill nv incorporates the imprints Brill, Brill Nijhoff, Global Oriental and Hotei Publishing.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise,
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Suite 910, Danvers, ma 01923, usa. Fees are subject to change.
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Dedicated to the memory of my mother,
Ruth Ann Twiss, and to my father,
James Albert Twiss
∵

Contents
Preface  xi
Introduction  1
1 Bureaucracy before October  9
1.1 Evolving Meanings of Bureaucracy  9
1.2 Bureaucracy in Russia  13
1.3 Marx and Engels on Bureaucracy  16
1.3.1 The Young Marx on Bureaucracy  17
1.3.2 The Class State and Political Alienation  19
1.3.3 Engels on the Origin of the State  21
1.3.4 Bonapartism  24
1.3.5 Proletarian Dictatorship and the End of Bureaucracy  28
1.4 After Marx and Engels  31
1.4.1 The Socialist Movement and Post-Revolutionary
Bureaucracy 32
1.4.2 The State and Revolution  35
1.5 Conclusion  39
2 Revolution and the Problems of Bureaucracy  41
2.1 The Dream Deferred  41
2.2 The Oppositions and Political Alienation  55
2.3 Lenin on Political Alienation and Inefficiency  61
2.4 Trotsky and Bureaucratic Inefficiency  71
2.4.1 Bureaucratic Obstructionism  72
2.4.2 Bureaucratic Work Habits, Attitudes, and Incompetence  75
2.4.3 Glavkokratiia  79
2.4.4 Party Bureaucratism and Glavkokratic Inefficiency  86
2.5 Conclusion  92
3 From Inefficiency to Political Alienation  95
3.1 Conflicts within the Party Leadership  95
3.2 Inefficiency and Political Alienation  105
3.3 The New Course Controversy  116
3.4 Trotsky and the New Course  121
3.5 Political Defeat and Theoretical Retreat  130
3.6 Conclusion  135
viii contents
4 A Coherent Theory of Bureaucracy  139
4.1 The Formation of the United Opposition  139
4.2 The Struggle of the United Opposition  145
4.3 Trotsky and the Opposition on Bureaucratism  158
4.3.1 The Conception of Bureaucracy  158
4.3.2 Characteristics: Composition, Policies, and Doctrines  163
4.3.3 Causes of Bureaucratism  167
4.3.4 The Danger of Thermidor  173
4.3.5 Characteristics: Political Divisions  179
4.3.6 The Struggle Against Bureaucratism and Thermidor  185
4.4 On the Eve of Thermidor  188
4.5 Conclusion  192
5 Left Turn and Theoretical Crisis  197
5.1 The Beginning of the Turn  198
5.2 Explaining the Turn  204
5.3 The Stalinist Offensive  215
5.4 Explaining the Offensive  220
5.5 Defeating the Right and Continuing the Turn  228
5.6 Explaining the New Turn  233
5.7 Revising the Theory  237
5.7.1 Conception  238
5.7.2 Causes  240
5.7.3 Characteristics  243
5.7.4 Consequences  245
5.7.5 Cure  248
5.8 Conclusion  251
6 The Turn and the Theoretical Crisis Deepen  256
6.1 Economic Upheaval  257
6.1.1 The Soviet Industrial Revolution  257
6.1.2 Mass Collectivisation and Dekulakisation  260
6.2 Trotsky’s Response to the Turn  263
6.2.1 Trotsky’s Critique of the Turn  264
6.2.2 Analysing the Turn  272
6.3 The Left Course in the Comintern  282
6.4 Trotsky and the Comintern’s New Strategy  285
6.4.1 Criticising Comintern Policy From the ‘Right’  286
6.4.2 Trotsky’s Analysis of the Third Period Strategy  289
contents ix
6.5 Developments in the Party Regime  292
6.6 Trotsky and the Regime  298
6.6.1 Trotsky’s Critique of Developments in the Party Regime  298
6.6.2 Trotsky’s Analysis of Developments in the Regime  304
6.7 Modifying the Theory  308
6.7.1 Conception of Bureaucracy  308
6.7.2 Causes of the Growth of Bureaucratic Power  311
6.7.3 Characteristics  313
6.7.4 Consequences  317
6.7.5 Cure  321
6.8 Conclusion  327
7 Theoretical Revolution  330
7.1 Breaking with the Past  331
7.2 Revising the Theory  340
7.3 New Policy Shifts  349
7.3.1 Economic Retreat and Recovery  349
7.3.2 The Turn in France  352
7.3.3 Shifts in Foreign Policy  355
7.3.4 Developments in the Party Regime  358
7.4 The Kirov Assassination  362
7.5 Reinterpreting Bonapartism and Thermidor  367
7.6 Deeper Shifts, Repression, and a Constitution  378
7.6.1 New Initiatives in Economic Policy  378
7.6.2 Further Shifts in International Policy  381
7.6.3 Repression, Party Purges, and a New Constitution  387
7.7 Conclusion  394
8 The Final Theory  401
8.1 The Revolution Betrayed  401
8.1.1 Context and Conception  403
8.1.2 Causes  405
8.1.3 Characteristics: Size, Privileges, Consciousness  410
8.1.4 Characteristics: Policies  412
8.1.5 Consequences  419
8.1.6 Cure  422
8.2 Applying the Theory  424
8.2.1 The Trials and the Terror  424
8.2.2 Trotsky’s Response  427
x contents
8.2.3 Trotsky’s Analysis of the Repression  430
8.3 Conclusion  436
9 Reconsidering Trotsky’s Theory  440
9.1 The Development of Trotsky’s Views  440
9.2 Evaluating the Theory  443
9.2.1 Conception  443
9.2.2 Cause  444
9.2.3 Characteristics  448
9.2.4 Consequences  452
9.2.5 Cure  458
Bibliography  461
Index  487