Joseph Stalin was born Josef Vissarionovich Djugashvili, which he later took the name Stalin, meaning “man of steel.” Stalin was an only child and had grown up poor. This lead to him being kicked out of school and becoming more and more interested in Russian politics.Joseph Stalin later became an important person in the future of the Soviet Union as the future dictator. Though Stalin did some great and possibly wonderful things during his years as dictator of the Soviet Union, he still did many more horrible things to outweigh the good that he did.The myth that Joseph Stalin had been a good leader and done more good than harm during his 24 year rule as dictator is false. Although some perceived Joseph Stalin as a good leader of the Soviet Union
Some of the people that Stalin had ruled liked him and did not see him as a bad person or leader. “He (Stalin) was a great popular leader. No revelation about what he did will change my mind” (Walters “Untitled Document). This perception of his greatness is still shown today in Russia, a recent poll conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Foundation shows that 36% of Russian people still believe that Joseph Stalin did more good than harm during his rule. Stalin had appeared to many as a fatherly figure and a peaceful man. “The myths that Stalin was a benevolent leader, grand modernizer and reformer, and national savior of the peoples of the Soviet Union have proven to be just as resilient as the man himself” (Walters). This is what he had wanted, for people to look up to him and trust him as a leader. In proof of his good leadership, he had been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize twice, in both 1945 and 1948,because of his involvement in bringing World War II to a close. Though he never won from either nominationthe people that favored him still perceive him as a great man. Stalin also received Time Magazine’s Person of the Year twice, in 1939 and
In conclusion, many soviets citizens appeared to believe that Stalin’s positive contributions to the U.S.S.R. far outweigh his monstrous acts. These crimes have been down played by many of Stalin’s successors as they stress his achievements as collectivizer, industrializer, and war leader. Among those citizens who harbor feelings of nostalgia, Stalin’s strength, authority , and achievement contrast sharply with the pain and suffering of post-revolutionary Russia.
For most people that know who Joseph Stalin was, they can agree on one thing: Stalin was one of the most brutal and ruthless leaders that mankind has ever seen. He is known as the instigator and leader of the Reign of Terror, which incorporated extremely horrifying purges. These purges have been estimated to have killed five times as many people as the Holocaust. The purges also helped him establish his power base, which allowed him to build one of the most powerful countries in its day and age. But he was not born evil, in fact, when he was a child, family and friends said he was shy. This does not mean he didn’t have a bad childhood, which happened quite often in rural Georgia. The pain of his childhood built as the years went by. Growing up admiring people like Karl Marx, Machiavelli, and Ivan the Terrible only stoked the fire even more. I believe that Joseph Stalin’s reign of terror can be traced directly back to his brutal childhood and complete belief in Marxist principles.
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.
Stalin was “born in Gori, Georgia” as the third and only surviving child of a “cobbler and ex-serf”(Compton’s 403). His true name was Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili. “In 1912 he took the alias of ‘Stalin’, from the Russian word stal, meaning ‘steel”, hence his nickname “Man of Steel”(Compton’s 402). Stalin began his studies at the seminary as a devout believer in Orthodox Christianity, where he was soon exposed to the radical ideas of fellow students. In 1899, just about the time of graduation, he gave up his religious education and to devote his time to the revolutionary movement against the Russian monarchy. In 1902 Stalin was hunted down and arrested by the imperial police for organizing a large worker’s demonstration. A year later he was sentenced to “exile in the Russian region of Siberia, but soon managed to escape and was back in Georgia by early 1904”(Archer 58). When the Russian Social Democratic Party split into Menshevik and Bolshevik factions, Stalin sided with the Bolsheviks, who just happened to be led by Vladimir Lenin. Stalin immediately became a staunch follower of Lenin, studying his every move. He did marry in 1905 but his beloved bride died of tuberculosis two years later. Their son, Yasha, died later in a Nazi Prison camp during World War II. After the Bolshevik’s Civil War victory, Stalin became highly organized and was elected secretary of the Communist Party. “After Lenin’s death, Stalin gradually isolated and shunned his political rivals, especially Leon Trotsky, and by the end of 1929 Joseph Stalin had succeeded in eliminating his opponents and became the supreme leader of the USSR” (Compton’s 404).
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.
Stalin had a viciously suspicious man who coined the concept of “enemy of the people.” (Khrushchev’s Secret speech, cold war documents, 87) Khrushchev in his speech bring up the effects of Stalin’s personality had on the progression of the Soviet Union like the falsification of cases in the provinces of innocent Communists, the empty information of spies everywhere, and to the doctor-plotters that Stalin has tortured confessions out of eminent Soviet Medical practitioners. (Khrushchev’s Secret speech, cold war documents, 87-89) Khrushchev’s secret speech for the 20th Party Congress did not stay secret for long, manuscripts were sent out to communist countries and even found its way into America. This speech was the fuel for anti-Soviet uprisings and resentment which led to the uprising in Poland and in Hungary in 1956. In order to lead the Soviet Union on a peaceful path that coexisted with the western world the image of Stalin needed to be squished to allow diplomatic relations with countries that were alike and not alike in the
Stalin’s hunger for power and paranoia impacted the Soviet society severely, having devastating effects on the Communist Party, leaving it weak and shattering the framework of the party, the people of Russia, by stunting the growth of technology and progress through the purges of many educated civilians, as well as affecting The Red Army, a powerful military depleted of it’s force. The impact of the purges, ‘show trials’ and the Terror on Soviet society were rigorously negative. By purging all his challengers and opponents, Stalin created a blanket of fear over the whole society, and therefore, was able to stay in power, creating an empire that he could find more dependable.
Joseph Stalin was the dictator of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics from 1929-1953. Stalin rose to power as General Secretary of the Communist Party, becoming a Soviet dictator after
He would always try to stay one step ahead of other countries and try to begin new projects which seemed to fail. Joseph Stalin had many people suffering and killed when he was
Joseph Stalin became leader of the USSR after Lenin’s death in 1924. Lenin had a government of abstemious communist government. When Stalin came into government he moved to a radical communist society. He moved away from the somewhat capitalist/communist economy of Lenin time to “modernize” the USSR. He wanted to industrialize and modernize USSR. He had overworked his workers, his people were dying, and most of them in slave labor camps. In fact by doing this Stalin had hindered the USSR and put them even farther back in time.
Joseph Stalin once said, “Death is the solution to all problems. No man-no problem.” He followed his philosophy throughout his rule. Joseph Stalin was a cruel Russian man who ruled the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics (USSR) from 1941 to 1953, many have idolized Joseph Stalin, while others have hated him. Joseph stalin grew up extremely poor and by his ultimate determination to transform the USSR, he became a ruler of a very powerful union. His goal was to positively transform the USSR from a peasant society to an industrial superpower. Joseph Stalin ran a government of fascism, killed millions, ruled in terror, took over agriculture by killing millions, and focused on running a government with complete power and turn it into an industrial
Joseph Stalin, The Leader of USSR from 1922 to 1953 Every group, party and country has an ultimate advisor or leader. This
There are many historical figures that made great impacts in the wars that have had even to this day, and still have an impact on people and have changed the course of the war. One of the many historical figures throughout the course of World War Two is the ‘Russian Hero’, Joseph Stalin. Joseph Stalin was the dictator of the Soviet Union during the Second World War, right after Lenin. Stalin was the man to change Russia from a powerless country into the military superpower it is today. Stalin had accomplished many great achievements, not only for Russia but for the entire Second World War. "The Red Army and Navy and the whole Soviet people must fight for every inch of Soviet soil, fight to the last drop of blood for our towns and villages...onward, to victory!”, was once said by Joseph Stalin, trying to motivate the soldiers like a good
Joseph Stalin was a realist dictator of the early 20th century in Russia. Before he rose to power and became the leader of Soviet Union, he joined the Bolsheviks and was part of many illegal activities that got him convicted and he was sent to Siberia (Wood, 5, 10). In the late 1920s, Stalin was determined to take over the Soviet Union (Wiener & Arnold 199). The main aspects of his worldview was “socialism
Joseph Stalin is a polarizing figure. Decades after his death his legacy still continues to create debate about his tumultuous years as the leader of the Soviet Union. This is evident throughout the four documents while some praise Stalin as impeccable others criticize his policies and lack of political, economic, and social progress during his regime. Even though Stalin was behind various violations of human rights he was able to maintain the Soviet Union during a time of turmoil both domestically and internationally as a result he has earned notoriety as a great leader and advocate for Marxist ideology.