It sounds almost cliché at this point but reading and really absorbing revolutionary theory is incredibly important in informing praxis. Though the world situation seems dismal, there are centuries of previous theories and trials which can be drawn upon now.
In addition to this, learning history is a powerful tool in understanding socialism in the past, present, and hopefully the future. If we can understand the contexts from which revolution arises, we can draw correct conclusions and learn vital lessons.
The conditions under which present and past socialism exist(ed) were deeply flawed. History is a tool to understand this. For example, how could we understand Lenin's analysis of Imperialism if we could not look at the histories of European colonialism and capitalist imperialism.
Perfect theories are produced only by perfect historical context. Though adhering strictly to ideals of pure socialism is alluring intellectually, it refuses reality which so often forces us to bend and renavigate our course.
A few good examples would be the development of Socialism within the DPRK and the PRC. Under harsh conditions of imperialist blockade, backwardness and agrarianism, ideological principles were altered according to the needs of the time, whilst following the core of Marxism.
Deng Xiaoping pointed out correctly that poverty did not entail socialism. In a way, the reforms of Deng were a way of accelerating the crawl out of the historical shell of Feudalism and Imperialism. An impoverished China could not construct Socialism.
The DPRK was the product of the brutality of American Imperialism. The arbitrary and violent division of the Korean Peninsula forced upon the Korean people the need to defend themselves and their independence. A pure, pacifistic socialism would not last one day against the Yankee
As Marxists we are historical and dialectical materialists and should not fear history. We should not shrink from the experiments of the past, because the history is on our side. Idealists would take socialism into a vacuum and judge it on groundless principles.
In seeking truth from facts, we can cast away the rumours and slander which surround these revolutions. Their theories, successes and more importantly failures are all important to learn and to calmly evaluate.
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