Sentiment and Will: The Qualities that Distinguish the Communist (Pt. 1)

The party’s text No. 1, The Communist Party in the Tradition of the Left, is, in many ways, the fundamental text of the party. It draws together all of the historical lessons of the numerous events that had occurred to the party up until 1974. Right off the bat, we can say that this lesson was nothing more than the confirmation of assumptions that were already contained in our historical doctrine. In 1974, just a few months after a painful split that had reduced the party’s membership to a few sections, it was deemed necessary to retrace the path of study of our tradition. We found, in that tradition, the confirmation that we were on the right path: the path for all time. Most of the quotations that we utilize are taken from this text, which is considered “the fundamental party text.” This is not just to boast about orthodoxy, but rather to help comrades and readers deepen the points that we merely touch upon. If we refer to it as fundamental, this is because it brings together the entire written tradition of the Left in more than 200 pages of quotation. It is then joined by a commentary that is itself the flesh and blood of our doctrine, which clarifies and synthesizes what is set forth in those quotations.

Nothing in the party is ever taken for granted as far as adherence to tradition is concerned, and it is the task of comrades to continuously return to the roots of doctrine. This is both to find continual confirmation that they are on the right path, and because with successive generations such work is the indispensable training ground for the revolutionary communist militant.

The very reference to tradition is indicative: party doctrine is more than historical experiences, theses, and organizational precepts. The party’s mode of existence is also, and above all, made up of a series of behaviors that are not easy to classify. Nevertheless, they constitute the backbone of the party, its guarantee to not slip, through disregard for tradition, into behaviors that are not our own. In time these behaviors can, almost inevitably, lapse into improper theorizing.

This is why our doctrine always makes references to categories which are inadmissible, incomprehensible, or otherwise inapplicable to class society, such as “tradition” or “fraternal consideration among comrades.”

Unfortunately, improper theorizing can occur over time, and over the course of a century there have been some. The most critical point is always the tactical field, when choices are foreshadowed that seem obvious and advantageous, but instead fall precisely outside doctrine and tradition. These are the attitudes, theorized or not, that we have called opportunism. From deviation to its theorization, the step is short, if not countered. “With the Left we know for certain that the party alters under the impulse of its own action; we know that indiscriminate use of tactics corresponds to changes in the organisation. Inevitably, then, any ’model’ of the party gets shattered into a thousand pieces.” (The Communist Party in the Tradition of the Left, ed. 1986; Foreword 1974. Below will be only “The Communist Party…”).

It was this domain that was “the starting point for some of the party’s most dangerous deviations. Many party structures founded or re-founded on very solid doctrinarian and organizational bases, and even on the wave of a victorious revolution, have been distorted out of all recognition in the space of a couple of years because they thought that possession of ‘sound principles’ made the use of any maneuver permissible, or worse still, that a ‘strong and disciplined’ organization made any tactical about-face permissible. That the painful corollary of such a tactical ’dégringolade’ is that it is then inevitably accompanied by a degeneration of relations within the Party, by the appearance of fractionism from above, by methods of organizational coercion and by out and out political struggle; this is something the century old history of the ‘Party’ class organ has taught us; and it is a definitive lesson.” (The Communist Party…)

Thus the party is constantly under attack from outside, subject to attempts to divert it, to have it deviate from its path, attempts often made in good faith (“the road to Hell is paved with good intentions,” as Lenin put it), but nevertheless dangerous to its existence. Not for the physical existence of the organization (although often those who left the party were short-lived), which may very well survive. The problem is its survival as a party of the Left, as a revolutionary communist party, the sole heir of the uncorrupted revolutionary tradition that we synthetically represent as an unbroken line from Marx-Engels, to Lenin, to the Left founder of the Communist Party of Italy, to the Fraction Abroad, to the organizational revival of the Party in 1951. Perhaps a unique case in history, the party that is publishing Il Partito Comunista, a continuation of the Il Programma Comunista since 1974, has existed for more than 70 years without changing a comma of its positions, its way of working, or its tradition.

Surely there is nothing like it in the landscape of far-left parties, not even in those most apparently similar to us. No one else has remained so stubbornly attached to the tradition and theoretical positions of the Left. Not to mention, of course, the hodgepodge of “communisms” that go out of their way to lure the working class under their banners.

The most important duty in this historical moment, when the revolutionary assault to power appears to be objectively distant in time, is to keep intact the theoretical patrimony of the Left. We must make it available for the class when the conditions will be adequate. “From then [1951] on, the party’s task has been to preserve this sentiment, and this science of subversion. In the amorphous present, the party’s task is to seek the confirmation of its theorems in contemporary and past events rather than trying to find new exceptions to them…. [K]eeping the conscious proletarian organization alive is both the most important revolutionary action of all, and a scorching theoretical defeat for our enemy towering above us.” (The Communist Party…) A preservation that cannot be merely the preservation of sacred texts, of unchanging positions, like Vestal Virgins perpetuating the sacred fire. The task of the party is, yes, to preserve its theoretical, tactical, doctrinal heritage, but this task, which our masters taught us, cannot be accomplished by sprinkling books with rat-poison, nor by endlessly republishing the sacred texts. Certainly, our heritage must be safeguarded. But in order for it to be a weapon and not a mere collection of concepts, it is necessary for the party to keep it a living doctrine by the continuous work of studying it, of reconfirming it in the light of historical events, and of transmitting it between generations. This work does not change the substance, but makes it alive and current, work that we call “sculpting.”

Although we are in the age of Artificial Intelligence, no machine, no matter how educated, can replace the passion, the sensitivity, the dialectic of the revolutionary working on our huge body of texts, the result of generations of militants.

That is why the party, if it is to survive in the sense we that we have described, must secure a continuous and uninterrupted turnover of men and women, of militants who learn the art of revolution.  These militants must apply themselves to the work of studying and sculpting the doctrine.

“The party cannot and must not restrict its activity either to conserving the purity of theoretical principles and of the organizational collective, or to achieving immediate successes and numerical popularity regardless of the cost. At all times and in all situations, this activity must incorporate the following three points:

“a)     Defence and clarification of the fundamental programmatic postulates in the light of new facts as they arise, that is to say of the theoretical consciousness of the working class;
b)     Assurance of the continuity of the party’s organizational unity and efficiency, and its defence against contamination by extraneous influences that are opposed to the revolutionary interests of the proletariat;
c)     Active participation in all of the struggles of the working class, including those arising from partial and limited interests…” (Lyon Theses, 1926)

It follows that the process by which, in this historical period, the party strengthens itself or simply ensures a physiological turnover with new militants is simply vital. It is paramount among its various activities.

Thus proselytizing and propaganda of the theory and program are necessary and permanent tasks of the party. The party directs its propaganda toward individuals of all classes, in all circles, and by all means.

In deciding on the methods, channels, and the proper proportion of our forces to be engaged in proselytizing, the party must not forget that the extent and timing of the healthy numerical growth of the party, a social-natural phenomenon, are independent of its will. Therefore, no significant numerical increases in the party’s membership are to be expected in the absence of a resumption of extensive economical struggles of the proletariat.

The party’s propaganda consists in presenting itself to the outside world, its strict continuity in the fields of doctrine, practical directives for action, modes of relations, and internal work.

Since the adherence of individuals to the party is always determined more by needs, intuitions, and feelings than by individual consciousness or comparison between the history of the parties and their doctrines, the best propaganda is that which approaches by the call of militia and disciplined communist work, not opinion. In the case of the proletarians, this is further enforced by stating the right directives for immediate action. The sequence for individuals could be formulated as follows: you see, you join, you listen and work, and in time you will understand something.

Experience with militating in other “left-wing” groups is not an advantage for those who approach the party and ask to work for us. If anything, it may be an obstacle to be overcome.

The target of party propaganda is individuals and not groups of any kind. Party membership will always be on an individual basis, and we will never admit pre-established groups.

Who are the militants that the party accepts to organize in its structure?

“The party organizes those militants who not only have chosen to struggle for the victory of the revolution, but who are also aware of the objectives that the party is pursuing and know the methods that are necessary for their accomplishment.

“This does not mean that individual consciousness is a condition for admission to the party, which we rule out absolutely; nevertheless this fundamental and principled thesis implies that every organic party relationship ceases to exist when explicit, or worse, diplomatic methods of physical coercion are used within its ranks, which we rule out before, during and after the revolution. This thesis also demonstrates that the members of the party should be considered not as raw material that should be subjected to propaganda and agitation, but as comrades with whom a common effort for the common revolutionary preparation is carried out.” (The Party’s Preparation for Revolution Lies in its Organic Nature…, 1985).

The party has always made a distinction among the men and women orbiting it, according to their degree of involvement in various activities, since its origins in the old Italian Socialist Party. We have information about these categories in our party press from throughout the past century. We also have experience of comrades who have stayed with the party throughout much of that century, and who still (2024) militate in this very party today.

The first figure is the reader. A person who is interested in the party, who buys and reads its press, who attends rallies, conferences, and various events organized by the party. He does not necessarily share its aims and methods, and avoids any involvement in its activities.

An evolution of the reader is the sympathizer. They manifest sharing in the party’s goals and methods, may participate in some party activities – including theoretical meetings open to sympathizers, dissemination of leaflets and newspapers, drafting reports suitable for publication, etc. They may even contribute financially through extemporaneous or regular payments. Contact with the party allows the sympathizer to understand what the party is about, and for the party to assess the characteristics a militant must have. The sympathizer cannot belong to other parties or other schools of thought.

In the past, the figure of the candidate was also mentioned, which today isn’t normally distinguished from the sympathizer. The candidate is a sympathizer who, having acquired some knowledge of the party, decides to commit themselves as a militant. They express a willingness to be organized and let the party know that they are willing to perform all related duties.

If the party deems that the sympathizer/candidate possesses the suitable characteristics, it welcomes them as a militant. This means participation in all theoretical and practical party activities, as well as committing themselves to pay a regular fee that they determine according to their own situation.

Not only that, the sympathizer, like the militant, must also agree to discipline themselves to the party. This is how it was described in the Communist Party of Italy:

“The bourgeois concept that the militant of a party merely pledges his ideological adherence and political vote and pays a periodic fee in money is replaced by the concept that those who join the Communist Party are required to continuously give their practical activity according to the needs of the party. This is accomplished by the organizing of all members… militants or candidates.” (Il Comunista 21/07/1921)

“Military preparation and action demand discipline at least equal to the Communist Party’s political discipline. One cannot obey two separate disciplines. The Communist therefore, as well as the sympathizer who feels truly attached to the Party (and those who do not militate in the Party because of ‘disciplinary reservations’ do not deserve the definition of our sympathizer) cannot and must not accept dependence on other military-type organizations.” (Il Comunista 14/07/1921)

So not only full party members, but also sympathizers and candidates, were bound (even before joining the organization) to the discipline, including military discipline, of the party.

The party organizes public meetings for readers and sympathizers, and sometimes also for a less qualified audience. In these meetings, it addresses topics of more or less general interest, approached with its particular and unique perspective and key of interpretation. This presentation is assisted by leaflet dissemination, poster sticking, and nowadays infographics. These are events in which the party expounds its way of interpreting facts and history, and in which no debates are allowed. However, the speaker may answer questions aimed at better explaining the concepts expounded.

What characteristics must an individual possess to qualify for the role of militant, full party member, and how does the party regulate itself in this regard? The question is not simple, and it involves the very essence of the party and the role of the militant.

Certainly not on the basis of greater knowledge of the doctrine of revolutionary communism.

“Our thesis is that not only are rational comprehension and action inseparable from one other, but, as far as the individual is concerned, action always comes before understanding and consciousness. And so it is for individuals who join the party too…Consciousness doesn’t reside within the individual person either before or after they join the party, or even after a very long time as a militant, but in the collective organ which is composed of old and young, educated and uneducated, and which performs a complex and continuous action in line with a doctrine and a tradition which is invariant. It is the organ ‘party’ that possesses class consciousness, because this possession is denied to the individual, and this consciousness can only exist in an organisation which is able to align its every act, its behaviour, its internal and external dynamics to the pre-existing lines of doctrine, programme and tactics, and which is able to grow and develop on that foundation; which is accepted en bloc even without having been preventively understood. Having a ‘mystical’ side to joining the party is a notion that only scares the Enlightenment influenced petty bourgeois, convinced, as he is, that everything can be learned from books.” (The Communist Party…)

“The basis of discipline comes in the first place from the ‘class consciousness of the proletarian vanguard,’ i.e., of the proletarian minority gathered in the party; Lenin then immediately goes on to draw attention to the qualities of such a vanguard using ‘passionate’ rather than rational language, by pointing out, like in many other of his writings (What is to be Done?) that the communist proletarian joins the party instinctively rather than rationally. Such a thesis had already been defended by Italian socialist youth back in 1912 against the ‘immediatists’ (who like the anarchists are always ‘educationalists’) in the battle between the culturalists and the anti-culturalists, as they were called at the time. In this battle the latter, by requiring faith and passion from young revolutionaries rather than exam results, proved to comply with strict materialism and with the rigour of party theory. Lenin, who’s holding an enlistment rather than teaching in an academy, refers to qualities of ‘devotion, tenacity, self-sacrifice, and heroism.’ We, his distant pupils, have recently, with dialectical resolve, dared to openly refer to the fact of joining the party as a ‘mystical’ occurrence.” (“Left-Wing Communism”: Condemnation of the Renegades to Come, 1961).

“Within the party, ideas are understood and clarified by participating in the complex collective work, which is carried out on three levels: defence of and ‘sculpting’ of theory, active participation in mass struggles, and organisation. Comprehension and understanding cannot be attained without participating in the actual work of the party. Inside the party we engage in a continuous work of theoretical preparation, of close examination of the party’s programmatic and tactical features, and of explanation, in the light of the doctrine, of events taking place in the social arena, and contemporaneously and seamlessly we carry out the practical, organisational work of penetrating the proletariat and battling alongside it. The militant learns from actively participating in this complex work and by becoming totally immersed in it. There is no other way to learn, and our theses have always asserted how deadly it is to place theoretical and practical activity into separate compartments, not only for the party but also for each individual militant.

“Having described the way in which the party-organ transmits its revolutionary theory and revolutionary traditions from one generation to the next, and allows itself to be permeated by said theory and tradition, we can see that it is plainly incompatible with the type of educational scheme according to which young people drawn to the party should first of all be indoctrinated as quickly as possible by expert teachers of Marxism and invited to attend ‘short courses’, and only after that move on to become party militants and participate in real battles. We envisage instead a collectivity, that studies whilst it fights and fights whilst it studies, which learns in the study and on the battlefield; we envisage, that is, an active collectivity, an organ whose survival depends on partaking in a complex and varied activity whose various aspects are inseparable the one from the other. And young people are attracted to and become committed to this complex work, become immersed in it, and, organically find their role within it, precisely by getting involved and taking part in it. Nobody needs a degree either before or after they join, and neither need they sit any exams: everyone is tested instead by the work they do, which selects individuals in an organic way for particular tasks.

“To join the party it requires more than a ‘Marxist’ education and a personal knowledge of our doctrine; it requires those gifts that Lenin described as courage, abnegation, heroism and a willingness to fight. It is through verifying these qualities that we come to discriminate between the sympathiser or prospect, and the militant, the active soldier of the revolutionary army; and we certainly don’t define the sympathiser by the fact he doesn’t yet ‘know’, whilst the militant does. Were this not so the entire Marxist scheme would collapse, because during times of revolutionary tumult the communist party is an organisation which has to organise millions of people who don’t have time to attend courses on Marxism, whether short or not, and nor do they need to; they will join us not because they know, but because they feel, “in an instinctive and spontaneous way, without attending even the briefest of brief courses of study which mimic educational qualifications”. And it would not only be anti-Marxist but just plain stupid to consider that these “late arrivals” should serve as “rank-and-file” whilst only those who had had time to “learn” and “prepare themselves” should be leaders. You get yourself ready in one way, and one way alone: by taking part in the collective work of the party. As far as we are concerned you don’t have to know all about the doctrine and programme to be a party militant; a party militant is someone who “has managed to forget, to renounce, to wrench from his heart and his mind the classification under which he is inscribed in the registry of this putrefying society; one who can see and immerse himself in the entire millenary trajectory linking the ancestral tribal man, struggling with wild beasts, to the member of the future community, fraternal in the joyous harmony of the social man.”  (Considerations…, Il Programma Comunista, no.2/1965, point 11)

“One thing is for sure, those who think you need to know everything and understand everything before you can act, or who see the party as an academy for training ‘cadres’, have wrenched precisely nothing from their hearts or minds. They are still up to their necks in the most putrid myth of this putrefying society: the one which holds that the individual, with his miserable little brain, can learn about, or make decisions about, anything other than that which has already been dictated by those astute manipulators of culture and ideas: the ruling classes.” (The Communist Party…)

…to be continued