With famine increasing tension, some blamed peasant conflicts on the idea they were naturally inferior and practiced classism, while others attributed the injustice due to the lack of education. Infertile lands, a series of famines and hunger provided further stress on the peasants, serving as the catalyst for conflict. There was a direct correlation between the severity of famines and the extent of peasant rebellions (Doc 1). Beginning in 1891 rural areas began experiencing famines, and that is the year the amount of provinces affected by rebellions jumped from approximately 2 to 10. Peter Kropotkin, a Russian anarchist, is against the government because he is growing resentful of having to provide food for the upper classes when he himself
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Gleb Upsensky, a revolutionary non-Marxist socialist, thought lowly of the peasantry because he believed they lacked the knowledge to behave better (Doc 3). As a socialist, Uspensky ideally would want all the people to work together for the common good. When the serfs were free they were uneducated and just were trying to preserve themselves. If they were to receive an education they may realize the importance of working for a common goal of economic stability for a community, as opposed to just providing for oneself. Katerina Breshkovskaia, a socialist, believed education was necessary because it the peasant's desire for knowledge showed they wished to improve and had the capability but needed assistance. Socialism is about equal opportunity for all, so she was motivated to increase the standard of living so it could be more standard for a general population. Socialism fought social darwinism and classism, so the peasants desire to better themselves proved that class divides were subjective and unjust, thus serving as an argument to support socialism. Anton Chekhov a physician and playwright believed peasants were disrespectful but redeemable because their actions were a result of not knowing any better (Doc 7). As a playwright, Chkhov would want to see plots from multiple points of views to understand each character. As upper class he sees the peasants as a burden, but he then sympathizes with them, seeing how they were not taught any better. An education would serve to help them assimilate to respectable lives, but he notes that they may not be provided the opportunity. A peasant petition stated they were entitled to universal free education because as a collective group of 640 only 6% were literate, thus serving as a barrier for them to achieve changes (Doc 11). Literacy enables the peasants to be taken seriously, yet it wash;t provided for them. The literate
Gleb Upsensky, a revolutionary non-Marxist socialist, thought lowly of the peasantry because he believed they lacked the knowledge to behave better (Doc 3). As a socialist, Uspensky ideally would want all the people to work together for the common good. When the serfs were free they were uneducated and just were trying to preserve themselves. If they were to receive an education they may realize the importance of working for a common goal of economic stability for a community, as opposed to just providing for oneself. Katerina Breshkovskaia, a socialist, believed education was necessary because it the peasant's desire for knowledge showed they wished to improve and had the capability but needed assistance. Socialism is about equal opportunity for all, so she was motivated to increase the standard of living so it could be more standard for a general population. Socialism fought social darwinism and classism, so the peasants desire to better themselves proved that class divides were subjective and unjust, thus serving as an argument to support socialism. Anton Chekhov a physician and playwright believed peasants were disrespectful but redeemable because their actions were a result of not knowing any better (Doc 7). As a playwright, Chkhov would want to see plots from multiple points of views to understand each character. As upper class he sees the peasants as a burden, but he then sympathizes with them, seeing how they were not taught any better. An education would serve to help them assimilate to respectable lives, but he notes that they may not be provided the opportunity. A peasant petition stated they were entitled to universal free education because as a collective group of 640 only 6% were literate, thus serving as a barrier for them to achieve changes (Doc 11). Literacy enables the peasants to be taken seriously, yet it wash;t provided for them. The literate