1. Marxism: Lenin was a staunch advocate of Marxism, which is a political and economic theory that focuses on the exploitation of labor under capitalism and the need for a workers' revolution to overthrow the capitalist system. He played a major role in developing his own interpretation of Marxism, known as Leninism, which emphasized the need for a revolutionary vanguard party to guide the working class towards socialism.
2. The State: Lenin believed that the state was nothing more than a tool for the dominant class to oppress the working class, and he advocated for the establishment of a
"dictatorship of the
proletariat" - a state run by and for the working class.
He argued that this state would be a necessary intermediary stage between capitalism and communism, where the state would serve to suppress the capitalist class and help build socialism.
3. Internationalism: Lenin believed that the socialist revolution had to be international in scope, and that the working class of all countries had to unite in their struggle against capitalism. He also believed that the world revolution would not be complete until the most industrialized countries had been transformed into socialist states, which would also help support revolutionary movements in less developed countries.
These ideas had a profound impact on the political and economic developments of the 20th century, and remain relevant and influential today.