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Stalinism is the political regime named after Joseph Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union from 1929-1953. A political system is a System of Politics and Government. It is usually compared to the Law system, Economic system, Cultural Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 It includes an extensive use of propaganda to establish a personality cult around an absolute dictator, as well as extensive use of the secret police to maintain social submission and silence political dissent. Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behaviors of large numbers of people A cult of personality or personality cult arises when a country's leader uses Mass media to create a heroic public image through unquestioning flattery and praise Totalitarianism (or totalitarian rule) is a concept used to describe Political systems where a State regulates nearly every aspect of public and private Secret police (sometimes political police) are a Police agency which operates in Secrecy to maintain National security against internal
The term "Stalinism" was coined by Lazar Kaganovich and was never used by Joseph Stalin who described himself as a Marxist-Leninist and a "pupil of Lenin" although he tolerated the use of the term by associates. Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party Marxism-Leninism is a Communist ideological stream that emerged as the mainstream tendency amongst the Communist parties in the 1920s as it was adopted
Like many other "-isms" it can be used as a pejorative term when referring to nation-states, political parties, or the ideological stance(s) of individuals, particularly "Anti-Revisionists". Words and phrases are pejorative if they imply disapproval or contempt For the online game see Jennifer Government NationStates. The nation-state is a certain form of State that derives its legitimacy A political party is a Political organization that seeks to attain and maintain political power within Government, usually by participating in electoral In the Marxist-Leninist movement an anti-revisionist is one who favors the line of theory and practice associated with Marx - Engels - Lenin It is also used as a pejorative to describe politicians and political groups, Communist or non-Communist, who are perceived as particularly authoritarian or hard-line.
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Stalinism's policies
"Stalinism" refers to the brand of communist regime that dominated the Soviet Union, and the countries within the Soviet sphere of influence, during the leadership of Joseph Stalin. Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The term usually defines the style of a government rather than an ideology. The ideology was "Marxism-Leninism theory", reflecting that Stalin himself was not a theoretician, in contrast to Marx and Lenin, and prided himself on maintaining the legacy of Lenin as a founding father for the Soviet Union and the future Socialist world. Marxism-Leninism is a Communist ideological stream that emerged as the mainstream tendency amongst the Communist parties in the 1920s as it was adopted Stalinism is an interpretation of their ideas, and a certain political regime claiming to apply those ideas in ways fitting the changing needs of society, as with the transition from "socialism at a snail's pace" in the mid-twenties to the rapid industrialization of the Five-Year Plans. Sometimes, although rarely, the compound terms "Marxism-Leninism-Stalinism" (used by the Brazilian MR-8), or teachings of Marx/Engels/Lenin/Stalin, are used to show the alleged heritage and succession. |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld Friedrich Engels (28 November 1820 – 5 August 1895 was a German social scientist and philosopher, who Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party Simultaneously, however, many people are professing Marxism or Leninism view Stalinism as a perversion of their ideas; Trotskyists, in particular, are virulently anti-Stalinist, considering Stalinism a counter-revolutionary policy using Marxism to achieve power. Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Leninism refers to various related political and economic theories elaborated by Bolshevik revolutionary leader Vladimir Lenin. Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky.
From 1917 to 1924, Lenin, Trotsky, and Stalin often appeared united, but, in fact, their ideological differences never disappeared. Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Year 1924 ( MCMXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
In his dispute with Trotsky, Stalin de-emphasized the role of workers in advanced capitalist countries (for example, he postulated theses considering the U. S. working class as bourgeoisified labor aristocracy). " Labor aristocracy " (or " aristocracy of labor " has three meanings as a term with Marxist theoretical underpinnings as a specific type of trade Also, Stalin polemicized against Trotsky on the role of peasants, as in China, whereas Trotsky wanted urban insurrection and not peasant-based guerrilla warfare. Leon Trotsky ( Russian:, Lev Davidovich Trotsky, also transliterated Leo, Lyev, Trotskii, Trotski, Trotskij China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc
The main contributions of Stalin to communist theory were:
- The groundwork for the Soviet policy concerning nationalities, laid in Stalin's 1913 work Marxism and the National Question,[1] praised by Lenin.
- Socialism in One Country,
- The theory of aggravation of the class struggle along with the development of socialism, a theoretical base supporting the repression of political opponents as necessary. Socialism in One Country was a thesis developed by Nikolai Bukharin in 1925 and adopted as state policy by Joseph Stalin. The theory of aggravation of the class struggle along with the development of socialism was one of the cornerstones of Stalinism in the internal Politics of the
Stalinism has been described as being synonymous with totalitarianism, or a tyrannical regime. Totalitarianism (or totalitarian rule) is a concept used to describe Political systems where a State regulates nearly every aspect of public and private In modern usage a tyrant is a single ruler holding absolute power over a State or within an Organization. The term has been used to describe regimes that fight political dissent through violence, imprisonment, and killings.
Stalinist economic policy
At the end of the 1920s Stalin launched a wave of radical economic policies, which completely overhauled the industrial and agricultural face of the Soviet Union. This came to be known as the 'Great Turn' as Russia turned away from the near-capitalist New Economic Policy. For the Malaysian New Economic Policy see Malaysian New Economic Policy. The NEP had been implemented by Lenin in order to ensure the survival of the Communist state following seven years of war (1914-1921, WWI from 1914 to 1917, and the subsequent Civil War) and had rebuilt Soviet production to its 1913 levels. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All However, Russia still lagged far behind the West, and the NEP was felt by Stalin and the majority of the Communist party, not only to be compromising Communist ideals, but also not delivering sufficient economic performance, as well as not creating the envisaged Socialist society. It was therefore necessary to increase the pace of industrialisation in order to catch up with the West. is a process of social and economic change whereby a human group is transformed from a Pre-industrial society into an industrial one
Some historians believe that "Stalinism was a success, having fulfilled its historical mission to force the rapid industrialization of an undeveloped country". However, Robert Conquest disputed such conclusion and noted that "Russia had already been fourth to fifth among industrial economies before World War I" and that Russian industrial advances could have been achieved without collectivization, famine or terror. Dr George Robert Ackworth Conquest (born July 15 1917) British Historian, became a well known writer and researcher on the Soviet Union Collective farming is an organization of agricultural production in which the holdings of several farmers are run as a joint enterprise The industrial successes were far less than claimed, and the Soviet-style industrialization was "an anti-innovative dead-end", according to him[2]
Points of view on Stalinism
After Stalin's death in 1953, his successor Nikita Khrushchev repudiated his policies, condemned Stalin's cult of personality in his Secret Speech to the Twentieth Party Congress in 1956, and instituted destalinization and relative liberalisation (within the same political framework). Year 1953 ( MCMLIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (April 17 1894 – September 11 1971 served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 following A cult of personality or personality cult arises when a country's leader uses Mass media to create a heroic public image through unquestioning flattery and praise On the Personality Cult and its Consequences (О культе личности и его последствиях commonly known as the Secret Speech or the The 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was held during February 14 26 1956. Year 1956 ( MCMLVI) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Cold War ensued as the USSR and the United States struggled indirectly for influence around the world Consequently, most of the world's Communist parties, who previously adhered to Stalinism, abandoned it and, to a greater or lesser degree, adopted the moderately reformist positions of Khruschchev.
The notable exceptions were North Korea under Kim Il-sung and the People's Republic of China, under Mao Zedong. North Korea is the commonly used short form name for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (or DPRK) a State located in East Asia, Kim Il-sung ( 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was the leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea from its founding in early Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES Mao Zedong ( 26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976) was a Chinese Military and political leader who led Kim simply purged the North Korean Communist party of de-Stalinization advocates, either executing them or forcing them into exile or labor camps. [3] Under Mao, the People's Republic grew antagonistic towards the new Soviet leadership's "revisionism", resulting in the Sino-Soviet Split in 1960. The term "revisionism" is also used to refer to other concepts The Sino-Soviet split was a gradual divergence of diplomatic ties between the People's Republic of China (PRC and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR Year 1960 ( MCMLX) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Subsequently, China independently pursued the ideology of Maoism, which still largely supported the legacy of Stalin and his policies. Maoism, variably and officially known as Mao Zedong Thought ( is a variant of Marxism derived from the teachings of the late Chinese leader Albania took the Chinese party's side in the Sino-Soviet Split and remained committed, at least theoretically, to its brand of Stalinism for decades thereafter, under the leadership of Enver Hoxha. This article is about the country in southern Europe For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Albania topics. The Communist Party of China ( CPC) ( also known as the Chinese Communist Party ( CCP) is the founding and ruling political party of the (ɛnˈvɛɾ ˈhɔdʒa 16 October 1908 11 April 1985 was the leader of the People's Republic of Albania from the end of World War II until his death in 1985 as the The ousting of Khruschev in 1964 by his former party-state allies has been described as a Stalinist restoration, epitomized by the Brezhnev Doctrine and the apparatchik/nomenklatura "stability of cadres," lasting until the hyper-revisionist Gorbachev period of glasnost and perestroika in the late 1980s and the fall of Soviet communism itself. Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (April 17 1894 – September 11 1971 served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 following Year 1964 ( MCMLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the 1964 Gregorian calendar. The Brezhnev Doctrine was a Soviet Foreign policy, first and most clearly outlined by S Apparatchik ( Russian: аппара́тчик plural apparatchiki) is a Russian colloquial term for a full-time professional Functionary The nomenklatura were a small elite subset of the general population in the Soviet Union and other Eastern Bloc countries who held various key administrative positions Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev ( Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachyov;; born 2 March 1931 in Privolnoye Stavropol Krai) is a Russian politician (Гла́сность)is literally defined as publicity and sometimes figuratively interpreted as "tipping a vase to let someone see into the vase but not the bottom of the vase" (Перестройка) is the Russian term (now used in English for the economic reforms introduced in June 1987 by the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev The 1980s was the decade spanning from January 1 1980 to December 31 1989.
Some historians draw parallels between Stalinism and the economic policy of Tsar Peter the Great. Tsar csar and tzar redirect here For other uses see Tsar (disambiguation. Both men desperately wanted Russia to catch up to the western European states. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Both succeeded to an extent, turning Russia temporarily into Europe's leading power. Others compare Stalin with Ivan IV of Russia, with his policies of oprichnina and restriction of the liberties of common people. The Oprichnina (Опричнина formed the domestic portion of Russian territory ruled directly by Ivan the Terrible.
Trotskyists argue that the "Stalinist USSR" was not socialist (and certainly not communist), but a bureaucratized degenerated workers' state—that is, a non-capitalist state in which exploitation is controlled by a ruling caste which, although not owning the means of production and not constituting a social class in its own right, accrued benefits and privileges at the expense of the working class. Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution Bureaucracy is the structure and set of regulations in place to control activity usually in large organizations and government In Trotskyist political theory the term degenerated workers' state has been used since the 1930s to describe the state of the Soviet Union after Stalin 's Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions (or stratification) between individuals or groups in Societies or Cultures. Left communists like CLR James and the Italian autonomists, as well as unorthodox Trotskyists like Tony Cliff have described Stalinism as state capitalism, a form of capitalism where the state takes the role of capital. Left communism is the range of communist viewpoints held by the Communist Left, which opposes the political ideas of the Bolsheviks Cyril Lionel Robert James ( 4 January 1901 &ndash 19 May 1989) was an Afro- Trinidadian Journalist Autonomism refers to a set of Left-wing political and social movements and theories close to the socialist movement. Tony Cliff ( May 20, 1917 – May 9, 2000) was a Trotskyist Revolutionary Activist. State capitalism, in its classic meaning is a private capitalist economy under State control Milovan Đilas argues that a New Class arose under Stalinism, a theory also put forward by various liberal theorists. Milovan Đilas (or Djilas) ( Serbian Cyrillic: Милован Ђилас ( 12 June 1911 - 20 April 1995) was a Montenegrin The New Class is a term to describe the privileged Ruling class of Bureaucrats and Communist party functionaries which typically arises in a Stalinist Some in the Third Camp use bureaucratic collectivism as a theory to critique Stalinist forms of government. The third camp, also known as third camp socialism or third camp Trotskyism, is a branch of Socialism which aims to support neither Capitalism Bureaucratic collectivism is a theory of class society It is used by some Trotskyists to describe the nature of the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin
Some analysts like Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn in The Mortal Danger: Misconceptions about Soviet Russia and the Threat to America consider the use of the term "Stalinism" is an excuse to hide the inevitables effects of communism as a whole on human liberties. Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn ( Алекса́ндр Иса́евич Солжени́цын) (December 11 1918 – August 3 2008 was a Russian Novelist He writes thus than the concept of Stalinism has been developed after 1956 by western intellectualists so as to be able to keep alive the communist ideal.
Stalinism's relationship to Leninism
The relationship between Stalinism and Leninism is disputed. Some believe that Stalinism marked a fundamental break with the legacy of Lenin and Marxism-Leninism as has had been practised up to that point. Thus, the Great Terror during Stalin's rule was an aberration of the communist system, which resulted from Stalin's personal paranoia and his cult of personality, according to them. Great Purge (Большая чистка transliterated Bolshaya chistka) was a series of campaigns of Political repression and Persecution A cult of personality or personality cult arises when a country's leader uses Mass media to create a heroic public image through unquestioning flattery and praise If only Lenin had been alive, those abuses would never have happened.
Others think that Stalin used and developed the political system built by Lenin and other Bolsheviks, and that Stalin was a real follower of Lenin, exactly as he claimed himself. The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists ( Большевик Большевист (singular, derived from bolshe, "more" were a faction They argue that it was Lenin who introduced Red terror with its hostage taking and concentration camps, who developed the infamous Article 58, and who established the autocratic system within the Communist Party[4] Vyacheslav Molotov, when asked who of two leaders was more "severe", replied: "Lenin, of course. The Red Terror in Soviet Russia was the campaign of mass arrests and Executions conducted by the Bolshevik government Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial Article 58 of the Russian SFSR Penal Code was put in force on February 25, 1927 to arrest those suspected of counter-revolutionary activities Molotov redirects here For other uses see Molotov (disambiguation. . . I remember how he scolded Stalin for softness and liberalism"[4]
Supporters of the view that Stalinism emerged from Leninism point to a number of areas of alleged continuity. For example, Lenin put a ban on factions within the Communist Party and introduced the one-party state in 1921 - a move that enabled Stalin to get rid of his rivals easily after Lenin's death. Moreover, Lenin used to purge his party of “unfaithful” Communists, a method used extensively by Stalin during the 1930s.
Under Lenin’s rule fear was used to suppress opposition. Fear is an Emotional response to Threats and Danger. It is a basic survival mechanism occurring in response to a specific Stimulus, such as For that function the Cheka was set up in December 1917. The Cheka ( ЧК - чрезвычайная комиссия Chrezvychaynaya Komissiya,) was the first of a succession of Soviet State security Felix Dzerzhinsky, its leader, exclaimed with some enthusiasm: “We stand for organized terror – this should be frankly stated”. Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky ( Polish: Feliks Edmundowicz Dzierżyński, Russian: Феликс Эдмундович Дзержинский Belarusian [5] Western authorities estimate that by 1924 the Cheka had executed more than 250,000 people. The number of labour camps increased from 80 in 1919 to 315 by 1923. The Gulag was the government agency that administered the penal labor camps of the Soviet Union.
The radical methods of Stalin’s modernisation program were also not entirely his invention, they were mainly the further development of Lenin’s war communism. War communism (or military communism) (Военный коммунизм 1918 - 1921 is the term created by western historians referring to the economic and political system This policy was characterised by extensive nationalisation, the forceful grain collection from the countryside and harsh direction of labour. Nationalization, also spelled nationalisation, is the act of taking an industry or assets into the Public ownership of a national government Labour discipline was draconian and lateness and absenteeism were punished severely. All workers were subjected to army style control. All those features can also be found in Stalin’s economic policy.
Finally, proponents of this view argue that the top-down, dictatorial government established by Lenin lacked essential checks and balances, and that this left the system open to abuse by ruthless politicians such as Stalin. Separation of powers, a term ascribed to French Enlightenment Political philosopher Baron de Montesquieu, is a model for the Governance In this view, Lenin's death left a power vacuum which allowed the most brutal of his successors to successfully gain power through manipulation and intrigue.
Bibliography
- Economic Problems of Socialism in the USSR, written in 1951
See also
- Joseph Stalin
- Stalin Society
- Neo-Stalinism
- North Korea
- Cult of personality
- Anti-Revisionism
- Maoism
- Anti-Stalinist left
References
- ^ "Marxism and the National Question"
- ^ Robert Conquest Reflections on a Ravaged Century (2000) ISBN 0-393-04818-7, page 101
- ^ Lankov, Andrei N. Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party The Stalin Society is a British and Swedish discussion group for individuals who see Joseph Stalin as a great Marxist-Leninist and wish to preserve Neo-Stalinism is a term used to describe historical revisionism in favor of Stalinism and/or Joseph Stalin. North Korea is the commonly used short form name for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (or DPRK) a State located in East Asia, A cult of personality or personality cult arises when a country's leader uses Mass media to create a heroic public image through unquestioning flattery and praise In the Marxist-Leninist movement an anti-revisionist is one who favors the line of theory and practice associated with Marx - Engels - Lenin Maoism, variably and officially known as Mao Zedong Thought ( is a variant of Marxism derived from the teachings of the late Chinese leader The term anti- Stalinist left refers to elements of the political left which have been critical of the policies of Joseph Stalin and of the Political Dr George Robert Ackworth Conquest (born July 15 1917) British Historian, became a well known writer and researcher on the Soviet Union , Crisis in North Korea: The Failure of De-Stalinization, 1956 Honolulu:Hawaii University Press (2004)
- ^ a b Richard Pipes Communism: A History (2001) ISBN 0-812-96864-6, pages 73-74. Richard Edgar Pipes (born July 11, 1923) is an American historian who specializes in Russian history, particularly with respect to the history of the
- ^ George Leggett, "The Cheka: Lenin's Political Police"
Further reading
- Vincent Barnett, "Understanding Stalinism: The 'Orwellian Discrepancy' and the 'Rational Choice Dictator'," Europe-Asia Studies, vol. Europe-Asia Studies is an academic Peer-reviewed journal published 8 times a year by Routledge on behalf of the Institute of Central and East European Studies 58, no. 3, May 2006 (online abstract).
- Alan Bullock, Hitler and Stalin: Parallel Lives, Goldmann
- Isaac Deutscher, Stalin: A Political Biography, Dietz, 1990
- Philip Ingram, Russia and the USSR 1905 – 1991, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1997
- Lankov, Andrei N. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately Isaac Deutscher (b 3 April 1907 &ndash 19 August 1967) was a British journalist historian and political activist of Polish Cambridge University Press (known colloquially as CUP is a Publisher given a Royal Charter by Henry VIII in 1534 , Crisis in North Korea: The Failure of De-Stalinization, 1956. Honolulu: Hawaii University Press (2004)
- Boris Souvarine, Stalin: A Critical Survey of Bolshevism, Alliance Book, 1939
- Robert Service, Lenin: A Biography, Belknap Press, 2002 ISBN 0-330-49139-3
- Robert Service. Boris Souvarine (born Boris Konstantinovich Lifschitz and also known as Varine; 1895–1984 was an Imperial Russian born French socialist Professor Robert John Service (born 29 October 1947) is a British Historian of Russia. Harvard University Press ( HUP) is a Publishing house, a division of Harvard University, that is highly respected in Academic publishing. Professor Robert John Service (born 29 October 1947) is a British Historian of Russia. Stalin: A Biography, Belknap Press, 2005 ISBN 0-674-01697-1
- Vladimir Tismăneanu (2003). Vladimir Tismăneanu (b July 4, 1951) is a Romanian and American political scientist sociologist and professor at the University of Maryland Stalinism for all seasons: a political history of Romanian Communism. Berkeley: University of California Press. University of California Press, also known as UC Press, is a Publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in Academic ISBN 0-520-23747-1.
- Allan Todd, The European Dictatorships: Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2003
- John Traynor, Challenging History: Europe 1890 – 1990, Nelson Thornes Ltd, Cheltenham, 2002
External links
- Stalin, Joseph V. Stalin Reference Archive at Marxists Internet Archive. Retrieved May 11, 2005.
- Joseph Stalin on Spartacus Schoolnet
- Joseph Stalin by the BBC
Dictionary
Stalinism
-noun
- The Communist philosophy espoused by Soviet Leader Josef Stalin.
- The act or state of living in accord with the philosophies of Stalin.
- Totalitarianism, by extension from the rigid governing methods of Stalin.
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