Why Lenin condemned second international?

Answer 1

Lenin was surprised that the revisionism of the 2nd International became a reality. He had joined other orthodox Marxists within the 2nd International in their fight against revisionism.

The movement was in a state of flux or to some a state of confusion. He had both a long term view as well as a short term view. It should be noted that none of the European Marxists had any real power. The 2nd International was pure speculation.

Lenin was attracted to the optimism of Marx who saw his ideas as a discovery of the natural order of things that in time would bring about the fruition of his unorthodox ideas. Marx and Engels were much to close to the industrial age to see that they would have never predicted it if they were born a century earlier.

Lenin also as did other Marxists see what they wanted to see. Lenin's other view was more realistic. He could see that the smooth transition into a revolutionary mode was not anywhere to be seen. The inevitability of a Marxist world was in doubt ( here we see the beginning of Lenin's future philosophy that if the people did not fall into line he would force it down their throats )

Lenin believed that the leaders of the European Marxist movement sold out to the bourgeoisie. Lenin hoped and maybe even expected that social democratic leaders and the workers would declare themselves disinterested in the war and be unwilling to shoot at their proletarians across the trenches. The reality was that the majority of the social democrats all supported the war, voted where they had some power to vote for war expenditures and declared their loyalty to their governments.

Lenin's hope (unreal as it was ) was that the working men's armies would turn their bayonets against their own governments and the ruling classes.

This reminds me of how Romans would fight other Romans in their civil wars. Lenin was not a student of history, or at least not a good one. If the Romans did not interest him he only had to look at the US Civil War.

This embittered Lenin who had of course endorsed the 2nd International. That is until it collapsed due to WW1.

His idea that the imperialist war would turn into civil wars was unrealistic. Not to be deterred that Marxism was flawed he was convinced that the soldiers were betrayed by the moderation of European Marxist leaders. Thus he saw that revolution needed "help" by dedicated Marxists like himself. Apparently the workers did not understand what was good for themselves. This would be fixed by people like himself.