David Shub
David Shub (1887 – 1973) was a social democrat arrested for activity in the 1905 Russian revolution and exiled to Siberia in 1906, and escaped to the United States in 1908 where he remained in close contact with leading figures of the Russian Revolutionary movement, including Bolsheviks Lenin, Trotsky, and Bukharin, and also liberals and socialists such as Kerensky, Miliukov, Chernov, Catherine Breshkovsky, and others.[1]
In 1930 he wrote the lead article on Stalin, probably the first authoritative profile to appear in the American press,[1] for the New York Times magazine (22 March 1930)
His biography of Lenin has been reprinted over sixteen times, described as "indispensable to the student of contemporary history, of russia, and of social revolution".[2]
Biography
David Shub was born and educated in Russia. In 1904-1905 he lived in London, Paris, and Geneva, where he often met with leaders of the Social Democratic Party, both Menshevik and Bolshevik, including Lenin, Plekhanov, Axelrod, Zasulich, Bogdanov, Lunacharsky, Bonch-Bruyevich, Martov, Potresov, and Dan.[1]
Essentials of Leninism
As an appendix to his biography, Shub compiled a distillation of Leninist ideology in Lenin's own words. Although he abhorred the ideology and praxis of Leninism, Shub felt that it was self-refuting. The best way to undermine Lenin's project, was to allow Lenin to speak for himself.
Selected publications
- Shub, David (1948). Donald Porter Geddes (ed.). Lenin: A Biography (16 ed.). New York: Mentor Books.
- Shub, David (1966). Lenin: A Biography (revised ed.). London: Pelican.
- Lenin, Vladimir (1948). "Appendix: Essentials of Leninism". Lenin: A Biography. By Shub, David (revised ed.). New York: Mentor Books.
Bibliography
- Gibson, Hugh S. (1948). "Editor's Note". Lenin: A Biography. By Shub, David (revised ed.). New York: Mentor Books.
References
- Gibson 1948, Editor's Note.
- Shub 1948, NYT Book Review quoted on the back flap.
External links
- David Shub, from the Jewish Virtual Library