Describe Lenin's views on "bourgeois intelligentsia".
According to the article on the Library of Congress website, Lenin had very negative views on the bourgeois intelligentsia. Lenin believed that the bourgeois intelligentsia were a product of the capitalist system and were therefore incapable of leading a revolutionary movement. Lenin also criticized the bourgeois intelligentsia for their lack of practical experience and their tendency towards idealism and abstraction.
Lenin famously described them as "not brains but shit" and criticized them for being lackeys of capital who considered themselves the brains of the nation. Lenin believed that the intellectual forces of the workers and peasants were the key to revolution, and that the bourgeois intelligentsia were incapable of leading a revolutionary movement due to their ties to the ruling class. Lenin saw the role of the intelligentsia as being to support the workers in their struggle against capitalism, rather than leading the revolution themselves.
Lenin's views on the bourgeois intelligentsia were influenced by his belief in the importance of class struggle and his commitment to Marxist theory.