After Lenin's death Russia looked for a new leader. The two
favourite's were about to embark on a political campaign; trying to
eliminate each other out of the running with their popularity, ideas
for the future dedication. Some say however, it was Stalin's ability
to manipulate the people around him, using them to higher his
popularity and to aid his lack of political knowledge. Trotsky had a
number of titles and past successes; he was the leader of the red army
and played a crucial role in the 1917 revolution. But Stalin was
underestimated; he used his position effectively to throw Trotsky out
of the party.
As a youth Stalin was a troublesome child. Before he was fifteen, he
was kicked out of seminary school for committing crimes; he then moved
on to a young adulthood of terrorism, and had numerous run-ins with
the Tsarist police force along the way. He was exiled to Siberia and
was imprisoned for his rebellious behaviour. He already had the making
of a great leader; dedicated and brave. However, he was claimed to be
a poor decision maker, lacked the capacity to produce an inspirational
speech and his political knowledge was rudimentary to say the least.
Walter Laqueur wrote:
"He certainly did not obtain his leadership on his outstanding moral
qualities; on the contrary, there was in him a strong streak of both
criminality and madness that became more pronounced with age."
He also writes:
"Stalin was in no way designed to be an idol of the masses: He was
neither a demonic, hypnotic figure like Hitler or Mussolini, who could
impart emotions to millions, nor a 'Pied Piper,' seductive in
leadership. Unlike Lenin, he co...
... middle of paper ...
... this, Zinoviev and Kamenev were dismissed. They believed in fast
economic modernisation but the majority of the Politburo believed in
the New Economic Policy, a gradual reform of the economy.
With the entire contenders kicked out, Stalin was now in complete
control and without a single election.
Stalin's ambition in the end prevailed. He worked his way up, and his
positions in the party given to him, he used effectively. Trotsky
lacked people support, and came across as an unpopular outcast. Stalin
was patient in his actions, when he was General Secretary he simple
waited and waited until he had the full support of the party. He was a
pure opportunist.
Trotsky thought his ideas how to run the country were going to drag
him to victory, that wasn't that case, a lot more was required, and
Stalin acquired it.
Joseph Stalin said, “Ideas are far more powerful than guns. We don 't let our people have guns. Why should we let them have ideas?”. Stalin was a dictator of the USSR from 1929 to 1953. Under his dictatorship, the Soviet Union began to transform from a poor economy to an industrial and military based one. While still a teen, Stalin secretly read Karl Marx 's book the “Communist Manifesto”, and became more interested in his teachings. When Stalin gained power, he ruled his nations using terror and fear, eliminating those who did not comply with his governance.
"Stalin, Joseph." International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. Ed. William A. Darity, Jr. 2nd ed. Vol. 8. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2008. 86-87. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 26 Feb. 2014.
to do so if the workers of the West revolted, and he was right. Stalin
When most people hear the name Joseph Stalin, they usually associate the name with a man who was part of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and was responsible for the deaths of millions of people. He was willingly to do anything to improve the power of the Soviet Union’s economy and military, even if it meant executing tens of millions of innocent people (Frankforter, A. Daniel., and W. M. Spellman 655). In chapter three of Sheila Fitzpatrick’s book, Everyday Stalinism, she argues that since citizens believed the propaganda of “a radiant future” (67), they were able to be manipulated by the Party in the transformation of the Soviet Union. This allowed the Soviet government to expand its power, which ultimately was very disastrous for the people.
I think there are a number of main factors to consider when investigating this issue. The first thing to consider is the fact that Trotsky and Stalin come from completely different backgrounds. Trotsky was from a prosperous Jewish farming family whereas Stalin was from s peasant stock in Georgia. This meant he understood the peasants. situation, as he had been there himself and the peasant made up a lot of the population, therefore he was quite popular already.
...ding his goals, but the results do in no way justify the horrible number of deaths and suffering that came from Stalin’s rule.
In the beginning Josef Stalin was a worshiper of his beloved Vladimir Lenin. He followed his every move and did as he said to help establish and lead the Bolshevik party. Much of the early part of his political career was lost due to his exile to Siberia for most of World War I. It wasn’t until 1928, when he assumed complete control of the country were he made most of his success. After Lenin’s death in January 1924, Stalin promoted his own cult followings along with the cult followings of the deceased leader. He took over the majority of the Socialists now, and immediately began to change agriculture and industry. He believed that the Soviet Union was one hundred years behind the West and had to catch up as quickly as possible. First though he had to seal up complete alliance to himself and his cause.
Hellbeck, Jochen. "Fashioning the Stalinist Soul," in Stalinism: New Directions. Edited by Sheila Fitzpatrick. London & New York: Routledge, 2000
Under a backdrop of systematic fear and terror, the Stalinist juggernaut flourished. Stalin’s purges, otherwise known as the “Great Terror”, grew from his obsession and desire for sole dictatorship, marking a period of extreme persecution and oppression in the Soviet Union during the late 1930s. “The purges did not merely remove potential enemies. They also raised up a new ruling elite which Stalin had reason to think he would find more dependable.” (Historian David Christian, 1994). While Stalin purged virtually all his potential enemies, he not only profited from removing his long-term opponents, but in doing so, also caused fear in future ones. This created a party that had virtually no opposition, a new ruling elite that would be unstoppable, and in turn negatively impacted a range of sections such as the Communist Party, the people of Russia and the progress in the Soviet community, as well as the military in late 1930 Soviet society.
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, inspired by Victor d'Hupay (a French philosopher and founder of early communism), wrote The Communist Manifesto in 1848, intending to fuel a society with a liberated working class and complete equality between all people. Nearly 70 years later, Vladimir Lenin used the principals found in The Communist Manifesto to overthrow the Tzar and bourgeoisie and turn the U.S.S.R. into a communist superpower. While Communism may have worked for a time, the easily corruptible and paranoia-causing position of Soviet dictator caused the leader after Lenin, Joseph Stalin, to create a totalitarian state, rather an a communist one. The U.S.S.R. became a country with extremely depleted resources, an unstable economy, and a hierarchical
Years of western propaganda has dehumanised Stalin into a maniacal dictator with no regard to human life. Obviously, this is merely slander; his ruthlessness and brutality are often exaggerated. In fact, this propaganda makes Stalin seem like a cartoonish villain who only wants to gain more power for himself. The question that stands is what was Stalin’s personality really like?
The personality of authoritarians will always exert more influence on its nation’s policies compared to a democratic leader, where the power is shared. This renders Stalin’s behavior and actions more vital to historical explanation. (Kleinman, p.390) Stalin also had more power over his policies and never experienced domestic pressure, like US leaders did. We do not know if it was because of social alienation, technological innovation or economic desperation that made people susceptible to great authoritarians that resulted in tyranny. (Gaddis, p.293) Gaddis argues that he “find[s] it increasingly difficult, given what we know now, to imagine the Soviet Union or the Cold War without Stalin.” (Gaddis, p.293) Observing further that there was no
After the death of Lenin, his chief lieutenant Leon Trotsky and Joseph Stalin fought for control of the country. Stalin was able to win out over Trotsky and gain control of the Russian government. He felt that Lenin and Trotsky’s socialistic ideas were flawed in that they were to wait for other countries to revolt and become socialistic as well. Staling believed that a single country could make socialism .
...dream of creating a socialistic and classless society. His dreams were soon warped with the temptations of ultimate power. Ignorance is bliss; this is true only for the short term. Stalin should have taken Animal Farm as a warning.
His leadership transformed the Bolshevik party from a small/minority party to take power. Stalin’s character had many strengths, but also weaknesses. In contrast to Lenin, Stalin was comparatively dull. He could not in any way match. the intellectual ability of Lenin.