Philosophy, Psychology and History:The Making of a Suicidal Terrorist

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Philip Pomper is a leading scholar of 19th and 20th century Russia.His latest work is a study of Alexander (`Sasha') Ulyanov, who was executed forhis role as one of the leaders of a failed assassination attempt on Tsar AlexanderIII in 1887. His motivation in becoming a terrorist is examined in the light ofthe evidence presented by Pomper and account is also taken of previous studiessuch as those by Thomas Masaryk. It is contended that the culture of nihilismand the concomitant worship of science were more important than anything inUlyanov's family background in explaining his radicalization. The transitionfrom theory to practice is explained by focusing on the psychological impact ofthe concept of the nihilist `new man' on the young student Alexander.Attention is also given to the significance of what has often been dismissed as aminor episode in the history of terrorism, one which would have faded from viewbut for the later fame of Ulyanov's younger brother, Vladimir Ilyich, whoentered the mainstream of history as Lenin.Philip Pomper. 2010. Lenin's Brother: The Origins of the October Revolution.New York, W. W. Norton and Company. Pp. xxvi, 276. ISBN 978 0 39307079 8 (hardback).
2011-03-10