Revolution Betrayed, The

The Revolution Betrayed is one of the most important Marxist texts of all time, analysing what happened to the Russian Revolution after the death of Lenin. Trotsky provided a brilliant and profound analysis of Stalinism. Without a thorough knowledge of this work, it is impossible to understand the reasons for the collapse of the Soviet Union and the events since then in Russia and on a world scale. As Trotsky points out in a most graphic and profound passage from The Revolution Betrayed, a nationalised planned economy needs democracy as the human body needs oxygen.