# Gorky — The Practice and Theory of Bolshevism character guide

> Gorky in The Practice and Theory of Bolshevism by Bertrand Russell.

**Role:** supporting

**First appearance:** 0005-iii-lenin-trotsky-and-gorky

## Snapshot

A celebrated writer whose dissent from Bolshevik policy earns him a chapter of his own, Gorky gives Russell a witness from inside Russia's cultural conscience.

## Who they are

Gorky occupies the uneasy position of the artist who cannot simply celebrate or simply condemn: he belongs to the revolution's world yet resists its methods, and Russell devotes a dedicated chapter to that friction. His presence sharpens the book's central distinction between the hope Bolshevism inspires and the price it exacts, especially the fate of art and free intellect under fanatical belief. For the early-middle arc, he is the human counterweight to doctrine — proof that loyalty and criticism can coexist.

## Relationships

### [Lenin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_practice_and_theory_of_bolshevism_se/characters/lenin)

_friendship_

Gorky and Lenin shared a complex friendship, with Gorky supporting Lenin's revolutionary goals but often criticizing his methods.

### [Marx](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_practice_and_theory_of_bolshevism_se/characters/marx)

_psychological_

Gorky was deeply influenced by Marx's ideas, viewing him as a foundational intellectual figure whose theories shaped his worldview.

### [Trotsky](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_practice_and_theory_of_bolshevism_se/characters/trotsky)

_friendship_

Gorky and Trotsky had a respectful but strained friendship, with Gorky admiring Trotsky's intellect but disagreeing with his radicalism.

## In the story

### [III: Lenin, Trotsky and Gorky](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_practice_and_theory_of_bolshevism_se/chapters/iii-lenin-trotsky-and-gorky)

Gorky is portrayed as heartbroken and ill, supporting the Bolshevik government reluctantly, and pleading for recognition of Russia's suffering. Russell finds him the most sympathetic Russian he met.

### [Daily Life in Moscow](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_practice_and_theory_of_bolshevism_se/chapters/vii-daily-life-in-moscow)

Not directly mentioned in this excerpt, but Russell references the Tolstoyans and social revolutionaries; Gorky is a known figure in the broader context.

### [Why Russian Communism Has Failed](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_practice_and_theory_of_bolshevism_se/chapters/vi-why-russian-communism-has-failed)

Not directly mentioned; omitted.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_practice_and_theory_of_bolshevism_se/characters/gorky
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_practice_and_theory_of_bolshevism_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_practice_and_theory_of_bolshevism_se/characters