Vladimir Ilyich Lenin-
Imperialism and the Split in Socialism.
Published in Sbornik Sotsial-Demokrata No. 2, December 1916. Signed: N. Lenin. Published according to the Sbornik text.
Source: Lenin Collected Works, Progress Publishers, 1964, Moscow, Volume 23, pages 105-120 / Web source: https://www.marxists.org.
Is
there any connection between imperialism and the monstrous and
disgusting victory opportunism (in the form of social-chauvinism) has
gained over the labour movement in Europe?
This is the fundamental question of modern socialism. And having
in our Party literature fully established, first, the imperialist
character of our era and of the present war [1] ,
and, second, the inseparable historical connection between
social-chauvinism and opportunism, as well as the intrinsic
similarity of their political ideology, we can and must proceed to
analyse this fundamental question.
We have
to begin with as precise and full a definition of imperialism as
possible. Imperialism is a specific historical stage of capitalism.
Its specific character is threefold: imperialism is monopoly
capitalism; parasitic, or decaying capitalism; moribund capitalism.
The supplanting of free competition by monopoly is the fundamental
economic feature, the quintessence of
imperialism. Monopoly manifests itself in five principal forms: (1)
cartels, syndicates and trusts—the concentration of production has
reached a degree which gives rise to these monopolistic associations
of capitalists; (2) the monopolistic position of the big banks—three,
four or five giant banks manipulate the whole economic life of
America, France, Germany; (3) seizure of the sources of raw
material by
the trusts and the financial oligarchy (finance capital is monopoly
industrial capital merged with bank capital); (4) the (economic)
partition of the world by the international cartels has begun.
There are already over one
hundred such
international cartels, which command the entire world
market and divide it “amicably” among themselves—until
war redivides
it. The export of capital, as distinct from the export of commodities
under non-monopoly capitalism, is a highly characteristic phenomenon
and is closely linked with the economic and territorial-political
partition of the world; (5) the territorial partition of the world
(colonies) is completed.