Materialism and Empiriocriticism
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Materialism and Empiriocriticism (Материализм и эмпириокритицизм in Russian) is a major philosophical work by Vladimir Lenin published in 1909. The book was a subject of obligatory study in all institutions of higher education in the Soviet Union, as a groundlaying work in dialectical materialism, a part of the curriculum called "Marxist-Leninist Philosophy".
The book (complete name is Materialism and Empirio-criticism. Critical Comments on a Reactionary Philosophy) was written by Lenin during February - October 1908 when he was in exile in Geneva and London. It was published in Moscow in May 1909 by the Zveno Publishers. The manuscript of the book and preparatory materials have been lost.
Most of the work has been written in Geneva but to get access to modern philosophical and natural science material Lenin travelled to London where he spent about a month visiting the library of British Museum. List of sources for the book exceeds 200 titles.
In December 1908 Lenin went from Geneva to Paris where he worked until April 1909 on correcting the proofs. Some passages were toned down to pass the tsarist censorship. It was published in Russia with great difficulties. Lenin insisted on the speedy issue of the book, stressing that “not only literary but also serious political obligations” were involved in its publication.
The book was written as a reaction and criticism to the three volume work Empiriomonism (1904-1906) by Alexander Bogdanov, his political opponent in the Party. In June 1909, Bogdanov was defeated at a Bolshevik mini-conference in Paris and expelled.
In the text Lenin argued, among others, that human perceptions correctly and accurately reflect the objective external world and that there is no independent, nonsubjective way to verify the existence of the external world.
Materialism and Empiriocriticism was published in over 20 languages and acquired canonical status in Marxist-Leninist philosophy.
[edit] Literature
- Robert V. Daniels: "A Documentary History of Communism in Russia: From Lenin to Gorbachev", 1993, ISBN 0-87451-616-1.
- Alan Woods: "Bolshevism: The Road to Revolution", 1999, ISBN 1-900007-05-3. Part Three: The Period of Reaction available online.
