Disputing the meaning of war: defencists, defeatists, and the intellectual struggle in the leftist movement, 1914–1916

Abstract

This article explores the formation and political function of the binary opposition between defeatism and defencism within the Russian socialist movement during the First World War. Initially coined as polemical labels in the context of debates over worker participation in the War-Industrial Committees, the terms gradually acquired broader ideological significance. By 1916, defeatist and defencist had become key markers of factional identity, simplifying complex political positions into a dichotomy that served to mobilise supporters, stigmatise opponents, and enforce internal discipline. Drawing on contemporary press, party documents, and émigré publications, the article traces how these categories emerged, were contested, and ultimately consolidated as part of a broader process of political polarisation. The study argues that language did not merely reflect existing political divisions but actively produced and deepened them. The polemical use of binary terms allowed socialist factions to position themselves as ideologically consistent and morally legitimate, while portraying their rivals as traitorous or compromised. By analysing how political vocabularies of war emerge, evolve, and function, the article contributes to a broader understanding of language as a tool of ideological boundary-making, mobilisation, and radicalisation in times of crisis.