How Did Vera Figner Use Violence In The Will Of The People

Political progress and developments are a fundamental part of human civilization. Many of these advances have taken place through a peaceful conflict of ideas, however groups often use violence to achieve political goals. One such group that used violence in Russia was The Will of the People. Vera Figner was a prominent member of this group. In the latter part of the 19th Century she participated first in making propaganda and later in carrying out violent acts against the government to bring about political change. Figner’s political goals centered in transferring power from the autocracy to the people. She justified the use of violence because it was bold, strong, and emotional all of which were essential characteristics needed to rally the masses and gain their support. Figner saw the violent acts against the government as bold measures to stir the people. The acts had as their primary goal the agitation of peasantry and other citizens under oppression from the autocracy. Much like an animal backed into a corner, limited options forced Figner and The Will of the People to use limited resources to make extremely public displays of force. The greatest display of such bold force took place in 1881 with the assassination of the Tsar Alexander II. This terrorist act was needed to make a statement. Propaganda …show more content…
It did however show many fruits during her lifetime. Its boldness made a statement to the autocracy that they would not back down but even more importantly emboldened the people to doubt the existing societal order. The greatest transfer of power to the people was accomplished by giving them the strength to resist and emotional energy to speak against the government. What revolutionists lacked in finances, numbers, and resources was replaced by their personal investments in the cause and violent acts of terrorism. For these reasons Figner justified the use of