Analysis Activity 1, pg 32 - Workers' Petition
WORKERS' PETITION TO TSAR NICHOLAS II (as found in 'Analysing the Russian Revolution' by Richard Malone)
We working men of St Petersburg, our wives and children, and our parents, helpless, aged men and women, have come to you, O Tsar, in quest of justice and protection. We have been beggared, depressed, overburdened with excessive toils; we are humiliated. We are not recognised as normal human beings, but are dealt with as slaves who have to bear their bitter lot in silence. Patiently we endured this; but now...O Tsar, we have no strength left.
We are...[denied] a single human right, even that of speaking, thinking, and meeting to talk over our needs, and of taking measures to better our condition. Any one of us who should dare lift his voice in defence of the working class is thrown into prison or banished...
Sire, refuse not to help your people...Give them a chance of accomplishing their destiny. Deliver them from the intolerable oppression of the bureaucracy. Demolish the wall between yourself and the people, and let them govern the country in conjunction with yourself...Consider our demands attentively and without anger. They have been uttered not for evil, but for good; for our good, Sire, and yours...
Give orders without delay to representatives of all classes in the land to meet together. Let capitalist and workmen be present; let officials, priests, physicians, and teachers all come together and choose their own delegates. Let all be free to elect whom they will, and for this purpose let the elections to the Constituent Assembly be organised on the principle of universal suffrage voting. This is our principal request, on which everything else depends...
Give orders and swear that they shall be fulfilled, and you will make Russia happy and glorious, and will impress your name on our hearts and on the hearts of our children, and our children's children for all time. But if you withhold the word, if you are not responsive to our petition, we shall die here on this square before your palace...For us there are but two roads, one leading to liberty and happiness, the other to the tomb. Point, Sire, to either of them; we will take it, even though it lead to death.
- Signed by George Gapon and workers.
Gapon, The Story of My Life, pp. 257 - 61
1. What was the workers' 'quest' or ultimate hope in presenting the petition to the Tsar?
Ultimately, the workers hoped that, in presenting the petition to the Tsar, he would pay heed to their grievances and consider their needs 'attentively and without anger.' They regarded him with reverence ('O Tsar') and genuinely believed that he would be deeply concerned for their wellbeing once he became aware of their situation. Thus, their aim was to obtain 'justice and protection' from the Tsar - that is, to obtain justice, in that they would no longer be deprived of their human rights, and to obtain protection, in that they would feel safe and secure from the poor conditions that they were subjected to.
2. How do the workers describe their situation?
The workers refer to themselves as 'slaves,' 'not recognised as human beings' and deprived of human rights - particulary in speech, thought, and association. Their portrayal of themselves emphasise the lack of respect and consideration of them and their situation, as they have been 'beggared, depressed, overburdened...and humiliated' - that is, they are miserable and lack sufficient food and resources to allow them to work efficiently throughout the day, especially as they have been forced to work beyond what they feel should be demanded of them ('excessive toils'). They have 'no strength left,' demonstrating that their situation is so pitiful that their appeal to the Tsar is an act of desperation and one that they feel is the only option left to them because they have no other methods of having their needs and grievances heard ('any one of us who should lift his voice in defence of the working class is thrown into prison or banished.')
3. What was the workers' 'principal request'?
The workers' 'principal request' was universal suffrage in voting. This, they believed, was what 'everything else depend[ed]' as it allowed them to have a say in the way their lives would be and to run the country 'in conjunction with the Tsar' so that their voices and their concerns would be heard. In this way, they no longer would have to be oppressed by the bureaucrats and would allow them to 'accomplish their destiny' - to control their own lives.
4. The petition concludes with the powerful image of two roads. Explain.
This image of two roads is extremely significant in that it symbolises the course Russia would take and the situation that the workers would face, depending on the decision that the Tsar made. One road leads to 'liberty and happiness,' indicating that, should the Tsar choose to consider their grievances benevolently, the workers would feel freed from their oppression and, would ultimately lead, they feel, to a happier and more prosperous Russia. The other road leads to 'a tomb,' indicating that, should the Tsar choose to disregard their concerns, despair and death for the working class people of Russia would result. Some could say that it also signifies the turning point of Russia, as it was this petition which led to the Bloody Sunday Massacre and, thus, unrest and the first seeds of distrust of the Tsar were planted in the people's minds because of the way the Tsar chose to respond to their peaceful march - although the workers merely intended for reforms, rather than a revolution, to occur when they drafted the petition,
5. Many primary sources included in history texts have been edited in some way by the author. The purpose if this is often to reduce the length and complexity of the document. If words have been left out then ellipses or three dots (...) are added to indicate this. What problems might such alterations create?
Such alterations result in an incomplete representation of the document and thus, a less accurate interpretation of the intentions and needs of the workers and the situation of Russia at that time. Once edited or altered, a source fails to be a completely reliable source as, despite the editor's intentions, there will always be views and values left out. Even the process of merely shortening a document reflects a particular bias, as what is left in primarily depends on what the editor feels should be left in.
Keep in mind that these are merely my answers to these questions and may be lacking in some areas or may be different to what you answered. =)