On the Role of the Individual in History
E408355
"On the Role of the Individual in History" is a Marxist theoretical essay by Georgi Plekhanov that analyzes how personal agency and great individuals interact with broader social and economic forces in shaping historical development.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| On the Role of the Individual in History canonical | 1 |
Statements (43)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Marxist theoretical work
ⓘ
essay ⓘ philosophical work ⓘ |
| addresses |
conditions for emergence of influential individuals
ⓘ
problem of historical necessity and contingency ⓘ relationship between leaders and masses ⓘ |
| aimsTo | reconcile recognition of individual agency with historical materialism ⓘ |
| analyzes |
determinants of historical events in class relations and productive forces
ⓘ
interaction of individual leaders with social and economic conditions ⓘ limits of personal agency in historical development ⓘ |
| associatedWith |
Mensheviks
ⓘ
surface form:
Russian Social Democratic movement
|
| author | Georgi Plekhanov ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin | Russian Empire ⓘ |
| critiques |
idealistic explanations of history
ⓘ
subjectivist overestimation of personal will ⓘ |
| field |
Marxist philosophy
ⓘ
philosophy of history ⓘ political theory ⓘ |
| genre |
Marxist theory
ⓘ
political philosophy ⓘ |
| historicalContext | late 19th century Marxist debates ⓘ |
| influencedBy |
Friedrich Engels
ⓘ
Karl Marx ⓘ |
| language | Russian ⓘ |
| mainTopic |
Marxist theory of history
ⓘ
great man theory critique ⓘ historical materialism ⓘ relationship between personal agency and social forces ⓘ role of the individual in history ⓘ |
| movement | Marxism ⓘ |
| notableFor |
influence on later Marxist discussions of leadership and history
ⓘ
systematic Marxist treatment of individual agency ⓘ |
| philosophicalClaim |
historical laws operate through actions of individuals
ⓘ
individuals are necessary but not sufficient causes of major historical events ⓘ |
| philosophicalTradition |
dialectical materialism
ⓘ
historical materialism ⓘ |
| positionOnCausality |
personal qualities of leaders are secondary and conditioned factors
ⓘ
social and economic conditions are primary causes of historical change ⓘ |
| positionOnGreatMen |
great individuals are products of their epoch
ⓘ
great individuals express the needs and tendencies of their time ⓘ |
| positionOnIndividual |
individuals can influence the form and tempo of events
ⓘ
individuals cannot arbitrarily change underlying social and economic laws ⓘ |
| supports | materialist conception of history ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.