The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-03-13
LESSONS OF THE PARIS COMMUNE.

the permanent threat to rights absolute refusal of
its hopes understood that its imperative duty and absolute
right to take its destiny into its hands and ensure victory
form the Commune dictatorship, Notwithstanding
it's superficial aspect of democracy True general election was
held but this after the rich bourgeose had either fled to
Versailles gone hiding and for all practical purposes
success dictatorship is necessary to de-
soy opposition of the bougeoisie How long this transit
appreciated by Marx Enge or by Lenn The experience
1871 was too limited to indicate It required the experience OF
etariat is, indeed, entire epoch
THE lessons of the Commune of naturally into two
categores the general the tactical The most i'm
poan general have already been referred to- Others
that must mentioned the following:
The Commune like every great revolutionary upheava
showed clearly than before the essentially repssve ea1
ure of the state basis 1t is precisely this
that makes necessary up bourgeois state to
Marx says before proletaran rule can be es
tablished.
b. The Commune revealed the inner rottenness of bour
geois naonasm Prussians and Versaese who few weeks
before had been facing battlefield cooperaed
freely the struggle against the Partisan proletaria The Com
mune international in its outlook Not only did
foreigners citizenship of them (as for instance
Franke being active Communards but proclaimed the
fraternity of all labor and spoke in the name OF the
Universal Republic"
c. The Commune showed that with the development Of
independent working class bourgeois revolution places
Immediately upon the agnda the question of the proetaran
revolution This had already been family indicated in the
struggles 1S4S-5O especially during the February and July
days the independent demands of the working class were
really the central point at issue In 1871 the fall OF Napoleon
luton proeariat which thereupon seized
much conclusive this lesson is
by revolutions in Russia Germany Austria and
Hungary doubt that the Japanese revolution when
comes. will reveal the phenomenon?
d. 1.-THE Commune taught the workers to consider con-
creev the revolution This Lenins phrase and
his work sufficient commentary upon it.
gancng briefly of the tactical lessons of
1871 get of the historic uprising of the Com
munards something apart from the medium in
applied they limited by and conditioned upon
recognizes that the mistakes made by the Com
explained the conditions in which developed
elementary of the evolution of productive forces
political immatuy of the proeariat class, the
great separate proetarian traditions etc. NeVerthe
foolish revolutionary party today to re-
fuse mistakes Not to look at the Commune
critically praise unfortunately the good and the bad after
religious enthusiasts would be to spurn the
greater part of precious heritage OF revolutionary expert
accomplishments and faings of the Paris Commune
teach the following:
a. Any "peopes' revolution Involving the movement OF
massey places before the proetrat the problem of eVo
iutionary alliance of the united front between
geoisie was the possible This does not that
composition of the Commune of 1871 correct
pattern The workers dominated the alliance of
all revolutionary elements but they incapable under the
prevailing of securing unquestoned and complete
Some the given below However, the
the Importance of allies for the proearat
nconsiderabe section of the lower middle class
follow revolutionary lead of the workers. This was
the experience of the Commune. is
add that such support will be much smaller
present conditions than in the Paris of 1871.
c. The Commune made the mistake of Understanding
importance union with the peasanty atho Lenin