In our process of learning about the Revolutionary period, one idea in particular stands out to me. This idea is the concept of “devoting yourself to a revolution.” Rakhmetov, for example gives up an entire lifestyle of carnal indulgence for the sake of personal improvement. This can be seen through his vigorous exercises, celibacy, strict diet and constant acquiring of knowledge. As we discussed in class, this is precisely the kind of professional revolutionary that Lenin wanted. In my opinion, this is a dangerous perspective. It requires a lot of people to be wholly dedicated to a cause in the context of education and thorough understanding. Gathering a party with a cause is not necessarily difficult but making sure that each member of the party is deeply and intensely qualified is a different issue. A modern example of this issue may be the American war in the middle east. Many American’s rallied against those that attacked the trade centers but failed to learn why the United States was attacked.

In the context of modern Russia, there is another issue. If a political party is made strong by both the level of dedication of it’s members and it’s size, then we can assume that perhaps those aspects are of equal necessity. The modern Russian population, however, is dwindling. While it is of course impossible to predict exactly what will happen in upcoming years, if a population grows drastically smaller there will of course be less people to strengthen political parties. This is a stark contrast between the Revolutionary Period we have observed and modern Russia. I would be curious to further explore the implications of population and it’s relation to political parties, education and general societal development in upcoming weeks.