Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin: A Comparative Analysis

During the time that led up to World War II there was two national leaders who rose to power. They caused misery and death to millions of people while under their rule. These two well-known national leaders were Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin. They were two of the most murderous leaders the world has ever seen, and were surprisingly similar in many ways. These two widely known national leaders had many similarities such as both of them killed millions of innocent people, both rose in power due to favorable conditions, and both were very skilled users in propaganda.

During their rule as national leaders both Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin were responsible for killing millions of innocent people. Hitler alone was responsible for death of more than 5 million, and Stalin was responsible for over 13 million people to be killed. However, the deaths caused by Hitler would be classified as murder, while the deaths caused by Stalin would be classified as an execution. During Stalin’s rule he did cause many innocents to be executed because he thought they were guilty of crimes against the state. He

They were able to get people to do anything for them or believe anything. What they were doing was using propaganda to help their cause. What is propaganda? According to Merriam-Webster dictionary propaganda is, “Ideas or statements that are often false or exaggerated and that are spread in order to help a cause, a political leader, a government, etc.” Hitler and Stalin both used propaganda to further their goals and ideas. They were able to gain support from their people and their country, and had many of them backing their ideas. Stalin used propaganda to portray him as the savior of Russia, a military mastermind, an ideological mentor, and even a caring father figure who was the defender of Russia’s children. (Llewellyn,