Letter to Maxim Gorky, Before February 8, 1916

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For A. M. Gorky

Dear Alexei Maximovich,

I am sending you under registered cover my wife’s booklet, Public Education and Democracy.[1]

The author has long been studying educational questions, over twenty years. The booklet is based both on her personal observations and on material about new educational developments in Europe and America. From the contents you will see that the first half also contains a sketch of the history of democratic views. This is also very important, because the views of the great democrats of the past are usually set forth wrongly, or from the wrong standpoint. I don’t know whether you are able yourself to take time off to read it, or whether you are interested; §§ 2 and 12 could serve as an example. Changes in education in the latest, imperialist, epoch are sketched out on the basis of material of recent years, and shed some very interesting light on the question for the democrats in Russia.

You will do me a great favour by helping—directly or indirectly—to publish this booklet. The demand in Russia for literature in this sphere has now probably greatly increased.

Best regards and wishes,

V. Ulyanov

Wl. Uljanow. Seidenweg. 4a. Bern.

  1. N. K. Krupskaya’s book Public Education and Democracy was not published by Parus, as had been planned, and was only issued in 1917 by the Zhizn i Znaniye Publishers.