The Reign of the Man of Steel, Joseph Stalin

631 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The Soviet Union under Stalin

During World War II alone, Joseph Stalin killed an estimated 20 to 60 million people. Born in the late 1870s, Stalin began his rise to power at 43, and by 45 had betrayed Vladimar Lenin to eventually become the leader of the Soviet Union. Stalin was a cruel man, even killing an artist for not potraying him as he wanted to be. He also made considerable use of the Communist International movement in order to keep other Communist parties pro-Stalin and pro-Soviet. Stalin, today, is seen as one of the most sadistic leaders in the past century, even surpassing Adolf Hitler to some people. Joseph Stalin is the man who turned the Soviet Union from a backward country into a world superpower at unimaginable human cost. Joseph Stalin was one of the cruelist leaders in all of history, alongside figures such as Genghis Khan and Napoleon Bonaparte. He destroyed anybody and anything that stood in his path. When Lenin died Stalin had to compete against Leon Trotsky. "Stalin's victory was slow and hard-fought, but by 1927 he had succeeded in having Trostky expelled from the party and, in 1929, from the country (Trotsky was tracked down and killed by Stalin's agents in Mexico City in 1940)" (Unknown). Although Trotsky's personal authority was unchallenged, Stalin was able to convince the Russian people to go with him, and not Trotsky. With his Five-Year Plan, Stalin planed to create a collective farming system and make the USSR powerful and industrial. Both of these goals would require massive amounts of murder, especially to the people of Ukraine. Stalin created a famine from 1932 to 1933 killing about six to seven million people and causing the Ukraine to fall. A combination between Stalin's drive for complete power and his paranoia led milli... ... middle of paper ... ...talin, the Nazis more than likely would not have lost to the Allied Powers. Even though today Stalin is seen as many people as one the most evil people in all of history, he did change Russia for the better. Overpowering Lenin and Trotsky to become the USSR's leader took their ideas and used them to make one the most powerful countries to date. Although his methods may have been unnecessary, they are what have shaped the world into what it is today. Works Cited http://necrometrics.com/20c5m.htm http://www.gendercide.org/case_stalin.html http://www.marxist.com/1927-expulsion-leon-trotsky.htm http://history1900s.about.com/od/people/ss/Stalin_2.htm https://www.marxists.org/archive/weisbord/Stalinism.htm http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/communism http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/01/joseph-stalin-more-popular-in-russia-now_n_2791776.html

Show More
Related

  • Resistance To Liberalism Justified

    794 Words  | 2 Pages

    Originally platformed by Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin took control of the communist party in 1924 when Lenin died of a stroke. Communist ideals were heavily in opposition to classical liberal values; Whereas Liberalism stressed the importance of the individual, Communism sought to better the greater good of society by stripping many of the individual rights and freedoms of citizens. Communism revoked the class structure of society and created a universal equality for all. This equality came with a price however. Any who opposed the communist rule were assassinated in order to keep order within society. Joseph Stalin took this matter to the extreme during an event known as the Great Purge. The Great Purge, also known as The Great Terror, began in 1936 and concluded in 1938. During these two years, millions of people were murdered and sent to labour camps in Siberia for opposing the Communist party and the ultimate dictator, Stalin himself. In some cases, even those who did not oppose the regime were killed. Sergey Kirov was a very popular member of the communist party and Stalin saw this as a possible threat to his ultimate power. As a result, Stalin order Kirov to be executed. Stalin furthered his violation of individual rights by introducing the NKVD who worked closely with the russian secret police force. One of the primary goals of the secret police was to search out dissidents who were not entirely faithful to the communist regime. This violation of privacy caused histeria en mass in the Soviet Union and millions were killed as a result. The Soviet union resisted liberalism to such an extreme that it resulted in the deaths of millions of people, leading to some of the darkest days in russian

    Read More

  • Joseph Stalin

    837 Words  | 2 Pages

    Son of a poverty-stricken shoemaker, raised in a backward province, Joseph Stalin had only a minimum of education. However, he had a burning faith in the destiny of social revolution and an iron determination to play a prominent role in it. His rise to power was bloody and bold, yet under his leadership, in an unexplainable twenty-nine years, Russia because a highly industrialized nation. Stalin was a despotic ruler who more than any other individual molded the features that characterized the Soviet regime and shaped the direction of Europe after World War II ended in 1945. From a young revolutionist to an absolute master of Soviet Russia, Joseph Stalin cast his shadow over the entire globe through his provocative affair in Domestic and Foreign policy.

    Read More

  • Joseph Stalin: The Worst Totalitarian Leader Of The Soviet Union

    1673 Words  | 4 Pages

    Life is the most precious thing on Earth, but what if it was taken just at the snap of a finger? Joseph Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union took millions of lives under his totalitarian rule. He was the most fierce and vicious leader in comparison to all the other rulers that enforced totalitarian rule. Due to governing and how many people were killed under Stalin’s rule is what makes the Soviet union during the 1920s to the 1950s the worst totalitarian state ever in existence.

    Read More

  • Similarities And Differences Between Lenin And Stalin

    2265 Words  | 5 Pages

    Stalin continued even once he was successful in accomplishing those goals, as he did not stop hurting people, but if anything it gave him more power to hurt people even more. But, at the end of the day, although Lenin ruled for only a very short time, he did raise the standard of living, though there maintained a large amount of hardship. Stalin, however, transformed the USSR from a peasantry to an industrialized nation in less than a decade, he did it on the backs of his millions of victims, who died because of his harsh policies and many purges. Lenin made a series of policies throughout the beginning of the Revolution and through his short time in public office that came to be collectively known as ‘Leninism’. There were many things that influenced Leninism, such as Karl Marx.

    Read More

  • Stalin Vs. Hitler

    2651 Words  | 6 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • The Great Terror in Russia

    843 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Fdr And Stalin

    612 Words  | 2 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • Reasons For The Failure Of The Russian Revolution

    1494 Words  | 3 Pages

    Stalin’s leadership of the Soviet Union can be best described as a period of terror and censorship. In other words, he was very strict, considering the fact that he created the totalitarian government. In order to create this type of government, Stalin used fear and propaganda. He took part in The Great Purge, which was a campaign of terror that was supposed to eliminate anyone who threatened Stalin’s power. He also relied on secret police, who would arrest and execute any traitors. The online blog, “The Reasons For the Failure of The Russian Revolution”, brings up information on how Stalin planned to rule as dictator of Russia. It has been noted, “This ‘reshaping’ had three main aspects: the elimination of all dissent; the liquidation of all forms of democracy and of working class organisation; the slashing of the living standards of the working class and the physical annihilation of millions of peasants” (Text 5). This quote explains how Stalin wanted to industrialize Russia, which includes the deaths of several peasants of Russia. The Russians did not just die from The Great Purge, but also from Stalin’s Five-Year Plan. The Five-Year Plan was an attempt to industrialize the Soviet Union. It was also a plan for increasing the output of steel, coal, oil, and electricity. He had control over economic resources, including farms and

    Read More

  • Joseph Stalin Research Paper

    592 Words  | 2 Pages

    boosted the USSR’s economy. Therefore Stalin had created a country which seemed corrupt at the time, but later on it improved by the hard work Stalin had forced upon them.

    Read More

  • The Effects of Stalin on Russia

    1594 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Effects of Stalin on Russia Much like Adolph Hitler, Joseph Stalin was one of the most ruthless and despised people in the recorded history of the world. Stalin, though, found it fit to abuse his people in any way he saw fit. This man started what history now calls "The Great Purge. " Through the late 1920's when the rest of the world was living it up as the roaring 20's came to an end, Joseph Stalin was setting the stage for gaining absolute power by employing secret police repression against opposing political and social elements within his own Communist Party and throughout society.

    Read More

  • How Did Joseph Stalin Represent A Totalitarian Government

    1319 Words  | 3 Pages

    Joseph Stalin killed many people in order to provoke a government of fascism.With his obsession in changing the USSR from a backward, peasant-centered, agrarian nation to an industrial superpower, Stalin developed a totalitarian government that ruled over individual lives, striking fear in the converted and threatening death or hard labor camps for the unconverted. The totalitarian rule under Joseph

    Read More

  • Joseph Stalin: Cruel Leader of Russia

    577 Words  | 2 Pages

    When Joseph Stalin became the undeniable leader of Russia in 1929, he realized that Russia was far behind the rest of the world. He knew Russia would have to modernize quickly to catch up with their competitors. When World War II came along, He had already developed a strong army and was developing a promising economy to support his endeavors, but then Hitler decided to try and invade Russia surely enough he got a chunk of territory;...

    Read More

  • Josef Stalin and His Economic Policies

    1142 Words  | 3 Pages

    After establishing himself as Lenin’s successor, Stalin ruthlessly increased his power and pushed forward with all his policies. What resulted was an extreme totalitarian dictatorship. Stalin imposed his stamp on Russia. He employed greater control over the communist party, and to guarantee its longevity, he unleashed a flood of fear and coercion which had never been seen before. He eliminated any threats to his position via the NKVD and the purges which resulted in the death of millions of soviet people. This also enabled him to proceed with his major economic changes in the form of collectivisation and industrialisation through three, Five Year Plans. These plans were merely reactivating the earlier ideas and policies of the Bolsheviks, policies which Stalin had condemned Trotsky to exile.

    Read More

  • Destalinization

    2948 Words  | 6 Pages

    Joseph Stalin ruled the USSR from 1929 until his death in 1953. His rule was one of tyranny, and great change from the society that his predecessor, Lenin, had envisioned (Seton, 34). Stalin put into effect two self proclaimed "five-year plans" over the course of his rule. Both were very similar in that they were intended to improve production in the nation. The first of these plans began collectivization, in which harvests and industrial products were seized by the government and distributed as needed. The government eliminated most private businesses and the state became the leader in commerce. Stalin also initiated a process called "Russification". (Great Events, 119)"

    Read More

  • Joseph Stalin

    515 Words  | 2 Pages

    Stalin consolidated his power base with the Great Purges against his political and ideological opponents, most notably the old cadres and the rank and file of Bolshevik Party (Stalin 2). The population suffered immensely during the Great Terror of the 1930s, during which Stalin purged the party of ‘enemies of the people’, resulting in the execution of thousands and the exile of millions to the gulag system of slave labor camps (Joseph 1). He also orchestrated a massive famine in the Ukraine in which a estimated 5 million people died (Stalin 2). It is believed that with the purges, forced famines, state terrorism, labor camps, and forced migration, Stalin was responsible for the death of as many as 40 million people within the borders of the Soviet Union (2). These purges severely depleted the Red Army, and despite repeated warnings, Stalin was ill prepared for Hitler’s attack on the Soviet Union in June 1941 (Joseph 1). His political future, and that of the Soviet Union, hung in the balance, but Stalin recovered to lead his country to victory (1).

    Read More

More about The Reign of the Man of Steel, Joseph Stalin

Open Document