Home / Authors / Leon Trotsky

Leon Trotsky

Leon Trotsky Quotes

Revolutionary

Leon Trotsky was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and theorist, one of the key figures in Marxist theory. Born on November 7, 1879, and died on August 21, 1940. Trotsky played a significant role in the Russian Revolution, being one of the founders of the Bolshevik Party and a close comrade of Lenin. He was involved in the political struggles after the revolution and eventually fell out with Stalin, leading to his exile and eventual assassination.

Filter quotes by topic

All Revolution Revolutionary Country Soviet Ifs Party Socialism Victory World Men Proletariat States Class Force Humans Communism Doe Opposition Socialist Struggle

Famous Leon Trotsky Quotes

“The motive force of history is truth and not lies.”

Lying Force Motive

Author:Leon Trotsky

“Only in the Fall of 1924 did [Joseph] Stalin discover that it is especially Russia, as distinguished from other countries, which can by its own forces build up a socialist society.”

Country Fall Force Russia Other Countries Socialist Distinguished

Author:Leon Trotsky

“The Left Opposition declared that the new tempo of industrialization were above our forces, and that the liquidation of the kulaks as a class in the course of three years was a fantastic task, if one wishes to say so, we find ourselves this time "less radical" than the Stalinists.”

Ifs Years Three Courses Left Force Wish Class Tasks Radical Fantastic Opposition Three Years Tempo Industrialization

Author:Leon Trotsky

“Not believing in force is the same as not believing in gravity.”

Believe Force Gravity Gravitation

Author:Leon Trotsky

“The historic ascent of humanity, taken as a whole, may be summarized as a succession of victories of consciousness over blind forces - in nature, in society, in man himself.”

Men May Whole Humanity Force Nature Consciousness Taken Evolution Victory Blind Historic Succession Ascent Evolution Of Man

Book:The History of the Russian Revolution

Source: The History of the Russian Revolution

“Where force is necessary, there it must be applied boldly, decisively and completely. But one must know the limitations of force; one must know when to blend force with a maneuver, a blow with an agreement.”

Knows Force Blow Limitation Agreement

Author:Leon Trotsky

“Where force is necessary, there it must be applied boldly, decisively and completely.”

Force Agreement

Author:Leon Trotsky

“If the Revolution has the right to destroy bridges and art monuments whenever necessary, it will stop still less from laying its hand on any tendency in art which, no matter how great its achievement in form, threatens to disintegrate the revolutionary environment or to arouse the internal forces of the Revolution, that is, the proletariat, the peasantry and the intelligentsia, to a hostile opposition to one another. Our standard is, clearly, political, imperative and intolerant.”

Source: Literature and Revolution

“Nowhere else did repressions, purges, suppressions, and all other kinds of bureaucratic hooliganism in general acquire such horrifying scope as in Ukraine, in the struggle against powerful forces concealed in the Ukrainian masses that desired more freedom and independence.”

Kind Force Powerful Struggle Mass Independence Acquire Genocide Scope Repression Concealed Ukraine Famine Suppression Ukrainian

Author:Leon Trotsky

About the Author

Born: November 7, 1879
Died: August 21, 1940
Known for: Revolutionary
Quotes: 150

Related Topics

Revolution Revolutionary Country Soviet Ifs Party Socialism Victory World Men Proletariat States Class Force Humans Communism Doe Opposition Socialist Struggle

Popular Topics

People Ifs Thinking Knows Men World Way Want Love Life Inspirational Needs Giving Feels Should Writing Trying Years Mind Firsts

Books & Sources

History of the Russian RevolutionRelated source material

My Life: An Attempt at an AutobiographyRelated source material

Literature and RevolutionRelated source material

Der krieg und die InternationaleRelated source material

The Revolution BetrayedRelated source material

The Revolution Betrayed: What is the Soviet Union and where is it Going?Related source material

Their Morals and Ours: The Marxist View of MoralityRelated source material

Problems of everyday life, and other writings on culture & scienceRelated source material

Stalinism and Bolshevism: Concerning the Historical and Theoretical Roots of the Fourth InternationalRelated source material

The History of the Russian RevolutionRelated source material

Similar Authors

Vladimir LeninBrowse related quotes
Joseph StalinBrowse related quotes
Rosa LuxemburgBrowse related quotes
Mao ZedongBrowse related quotes
Ernest MandelBrowse related quotes
Karl MarxBrowse related quotes
Che GuevaraBrowse related quotes
Friedrich EngelsBrowse related quotes
C. L. R. JamesBrowse related quotes
Marianne van HirtumBrowse related quotes