The content of the book is organized according to actual topics, and the pages are grouped by topic instead of the usual page numbering. At the beginning of the book, Nguyen Ai Quoc wrote: "The purpose of the book is to tell our people that they can understand:
The content of the book is organized according to actual topics, and the pages are grouped by topic instead of the usual page numbering. At the beginning of the book, Nguyen Ai Quoc wrote: "The purpose of the book is to tell our people that they can understand:
1) Why should people make a revolution so that they can live.
2) Why the revolution is a common task, not the only task of one or several persons.
3) The practice of a real revolution of other countries for us to learn.
4) Tell our people to find out by showing worldwide revolutions:
5) Who is our friend, who is our enemy?
6) How to make a revolution?”.
And the call to action at the end: "After you have read this book, you will think carefully and wake up, wake up and get up, uniting for the revolution"(4).
First of all, "Đường Kách Mệnh" sets the standards of morality for revolutionaries who are directly involved in a mission full of suffering and deprivation but glorious for the nation. Such standards are: Economy, sacrifice the needs of the individual for a common cause, don’t be arrogant and haughty, your promises sould be done, keep your revolutionary point of view firmly, self-sacrifice, neglect of material requirements, tolerate individuals, ready to help, take decisive deals but without risk, subordination to the collectives.
Đường Kách Mệnh introduced typical world revolutions as the revolution in USA in 1776, the French revolution in 1789 and the Russian revolution in 1917. By analyzing characteristics of these revolutions he came to the conclusion: “In the world now only Russian revolution has been succesfully completed and only people in Russia has deservedly received a real equality and happiness.
Đường Kách Mệnh introduced enormous merit of the First and second Internationals at the same time ctiticized non-maxist opportunists in the second International. Nguyen Ai Quoc emphasized that Revolution in Vietnam is an intergrat part of the revolutionary movement in the world and for the victory of revolution in Vietnam we should work according to the 3rd international (comintern).
Pages in the book of “Đường Kách Mệnh”.
“Đường Kách Mệnh” clearly shows that the revolution is the mission of whole nation, not a buisiness of several persons.
“Đường Kách Mệnh” believes that the communist party is the key factor determining the victory of the revolution: “a strong party leads to the victory of the revolution as stong steersman manages the boat. The party will be strong if it’s armed with a strong tenet in which all the members of the party understand and belive in. The party without a tenet equals a man without a brain, a boat without a compass”.
"Đường Kách Mệnh" believes that solidarity is one of the important factors guaranteeing the victory of the revolution in Vietnam.
"Đường Kách Mệnh" represents the mass organs of the Comintern as International Youth, International Union of Red Workers, International Peasantry, International Red Salvation for people in Vietnam as models of organization and seeking support for them among the people.
“Đường Kách Mệnh” is a continuation of the work of “Bản án chế độ thực dân Pháp” (The Judgment of French Colonization) by Nguyen Ai Quoc which has been issued in Paris in 1925. If In the first work, he revealed and convicted French colonisators in unbearable frightful actions in their colonies, then in this second work he pointed to a concrete way of liberalizing his native land and people from enslavement. In other words the first book was an awakening and the second book was a call for action. Consequently E. V Kobelev – a Russian researcher specializing in Vietnam knowing Vietnamese history during this period well was right in the conclusion: “The book of “Đường Kách Mệnh” by Nguyen Ai Quoc played the role of the book of “What to do” by V.I Lenin in Russia”.(5)
Another Russian researcher, I.A Ognetov, in his work on the study of the spread of Marxism-Leninism in Vietnam concluded: "Đường Kách Mệnh" in which the first Vietnamese communist expounded the content of Marxism-Leninism and the development trend of the Vietnamese revolution in an easy way of understanding played a key role in the popularization of Marxism-Leninism in Vietnam in the 1920s and in the unity of patiotism and Marxism-Leninism”(6). Vietnamese revolutioners of the first generarion considered the book as a reference book for their actions.
Associated professor: Phạm Xanh
Translator: Nguyen Thai Hung