Stalin Leninism And Marxism example essay topic

Throughout the Communist period in Russia, Lenin was always regarded as almost a Saint. Upon his death, his body was kept in a public tomb on Red Square, and his reputation remained unblemished right up to the time when Communism fell and it was once again legal to criticise the country's leaders. Stalin however, was regarded as evil incarnate, perverting true communism through his mad paranoia into a totalitarian police state. Whilst it is true that Stalin was certainly a harsh leader, there is also evidence suggesting that Stalinism had it's roots in Leninism. -- their policy towards each other.

Paragraph - Stalin said he was Lenin's pupil Although Stalin portrayed himself as the loyal disciple of Lenin, using his funeral to enforce this, Lenin himself was shown to be very worried about the rise of Stalin to positions of power within the party. Although near to his death in December 1922, Lenin dictated his Testament which was intended to be read at the Twelfth Party Congress in April 1923. However, with his stroke on March 10th ending his party life, the letter was kept by Lenin's wife and never read until after his death at the Thirteenth Party Congress in 1925 at which the members swore to secrecy fearing that it would split the party. In the testament, Lenin claims "Comrade Stalin, having become general secretary, has unlimited authority concentrated in his hands, and I am not sure whether he will always be capable of using that authority with sufficient caution". As well as this, Lenin dictated six other letters opposing Stalin's policies until his death in 1924. Such a resistance to Stalin's policies make for a significant argument against the two men being alike.

General Lenin vs. Stalin: "there is no continuity between Stalinism and Leninism" - Medvedev. Lenin was strongly against tsarist and it's features, whilst Stalin can be seen as in effect a 'red tsar' (some people who think this): supreme leader with a god-like personality and cult the nobility were replaced by the nomenklatura and support was held by patronage massive bureaucracy - lots of corruption Secret police. OGPU then NKVD to monitor all aspects of life. Rooted out opposition to the party Internal passports controlled population movement No free speech - political parties banned No democracy - although soviets were designed to be more democratic underpinned by a cult - tsar = orthodoxy, Stalin = Leninism and Marxism. Soviets saw it as their duty to spread these values throughout the world.

Nationalism: Stalin's 'socialism in one country' emphasised the USSR's ability to be communist on it's own - contrary to Marxism and the 'world revolution'. tried to be the dominant power and put soviet security above all other priorities. took from the peasants to put into plans for rapid industrialisation. During the Tsars, Witte had many indirect taxes which squeezed the peasants. change lead from above always - "The existing order of serfdom cannot remain unchanged. It is better to begin to abolish bondage from above than to wait for the time when it will begin to abolish itself spontaneously from below". - Alex II on the emancipation.

Stalin went for industrialisation through the command economy. both believed it was their duty to modernise Russia and keep out opposition and keep it secure. Stalin praised peter the great o the eve of The Great Turn in 1928 he believed he was acting in the best interests of the people. Stalin said to his mother on her deathbed: "Remember the tsar? Well, I'm like a tsar". , but although he may have deviated from the communist path, that does not necessarily mean he was unlike Lenin. Lenin also had Tsar-like policies, Lenin's ban on faction 1921. Once party policy was agreed by the central committee, everyone had to accept it or they would be removed from the party.

He did not kill people though. 1923, nomenklatura system whereby about 5,500 party positions were reserved for those appointed by the party only. It made the regime more authoritarian and less democratic, but meant that people would not question decisions of the central committee. Much like the nobility, although Lenin did intend to increase democracy but died before he was able to. Lenin's Personality: Professional revolutionary, exiled from Russia many times. Dedicated to the true Marxist society.

When the Soviet and the provisional government were co-operating, he arrived back from exile in Finland and immediately brushed aside Chkheidze's polite request for him not to rock the boat with a speech calling for's a world-wide socialist revolution, an immediate end to the war, the end to co-operation with the provisional government and for the Soviet to take power, and land to be given to the peasants. These demands were in the 'April thesis', written on the train from Switzerland, and became party policy less than a month after they were written with little opposition. "Great organisational abilities", (Corin / Feihn) "no one else in the party had the prestige and standing to see them through... difficult periods" - (Corin / Feihn) Flexible and pragmatic - the changes he made to Marxism to produce Marxism-Leninism tailored to Russia. Marx actually said that this is what would happen. "His life was the revolution" (Corin / Feihn). He did not want personal gain, and often even slept in a small room behind the offices.

Traditionally seen as 'soft', but as shown by a memorandum published in 1990, he ordered the murder of the clergy who had fought off officials raiding the church and countermanded the politburo when they voted to stop the raids. He also ordered the deaths of hundred kulaks to serve as an example to others. Lenin on Stalin Lenin was worried by Stalin (Lenin's testament) - "Comrade Stalin, having become general secretary, has unlimited authority concentrated in his hands, and I am not sure whether he will always be capable of using that authority with sufficient caution" Lenin (from the testament) Lenin also dictated other letters which were taken down, and smuggled out of Lenin's room by his secretaries. These letters concerned the following struggles: 1 Supporting Trotsky's proposal to invest the State Planning Authority with additional powers.

[December 1922] 2 Opposing Stalin's move to weaken the state monopoly on foreign trade, and authorising Trotsky to 'stand up for my views on the foreign-trade monopoly'. [December 1922] 3 Opposing Great Russian chauvinism of Stalin in relation to his proposal for "union" of the independent republics in the Russian Federation. [December 1922] 4 Reduction of the size of the Workers and Peasants Inspection (The 'Rabkrin', of which Stalin was the head) [January 23, 1923] 5 Better Fewer, But Better. "everyone knows that Rabkrin does not at present enjoy the slightest authority... nothing can be expected from this People's Commissariat... " [February 7 1923] 6 Opposing Stalin's "persecution" of the "Georgian case".

[March 5-6 1923] This shows that Lenin did not like Stalin's policies and therefore puts forward a strong case for the two's policies not being similar. Terror: Robert Conquest quite justifiably names the period of 1936-38 "The Great Terror."On 12th December 1937 alone Molotov and Stalin approved 3,167 death sentences and then went to the cinema". These were undertaken totally coldly with no cares whatsoever. Stalin received 383 list of names divided into 'military', 'NKVD', 'wives of enemies of the people', and 'general'. Over 230,000 people were on these lists over Stalin's reign - completely dwarfing the death toll in the Rohm purge of Hitler's Germany.

In 1932-35, more than 20% of the party were expelled non-violently in a 'chistka' as part of a clearing out process after collectivisation. Lenin also did this (eg) Show trials resulted in may prominent Bolshevik's execution. Mass terror in 1937-38 when thousands of party officials, industrial leaders, armed forces, and professionals were denounced, arrested and imprisoned. Many executed, even more died in labour camps. Lenin never went this far. Of the 21 Central Committee members at the time of the October 1917 Revolution, only Stalin survived.

Very difficult to estimate purge casualties, but Robert Conquest estimates the victims as follows: Arrests 7-8 million Execution 10-1.5 million Population of camps 7-8 million '32-33 Famine 7 million Total '29-53 20 million Wheat croft and Davies say 10 million between '27 and '38 with 8.5 million of these between 27-36 mostly from famine. Dimitri Volkogonov - 7 million executed, 16.5 million imprisoned between '29 and '53 Lenin also used terror, particularly under the time of War Communism Bolsheviks were facing more opposition from the cities because: workers were angry at their situation (low food, no money, state violence) Calls for a new soviet, the return of the Constituent Assembly, overthrow of Sovnakom (Council of the People's Commissars - set up so that Lenin did not have to share power with any other than those he chose (like he would have had to with the soviet) ). Anarchists who rejected the authoritarianism of Lenin, and left-wing socialist revolutionaries who were against the treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Assassination attempt on Lenin in august 1918, German ambassador shot July, head of Cheka captured, resulting in the red terror being carried out by the Cheka in summer 1918. But mainly an "intensification of what was already going on" (Corin / Feihn). From June, socialist revolutionaries arrested as well as anarchists and other extreme leftists.

All excluded from the soviet. Tsar, family and servants executed. 17th July, 1918 in the Ural Mountains. Lenin claimed that it was carried out by the local soviet, but this was probably so as not to antagonise the Germans with whom he was negotiating peace. Official figures put deaths by Cheka at 13,000 but most estimate around 300,000.

Still doesn't compare to Stalin. One of the founder members of the Cheka said "The Cheka is not an investigating committee, a court, or a tribunal. It is a fighting organ on the internal front of the civil war... It does not judge, it strikes".

It reported directly to Lenin and the Politburo. Very random arrests of 'counter-revolutionaries'. Cheka bosses acted like tyrants of their own area, with denunciations resulting from petty arguments. In the country, the Cheka requisitioned grain ruthlessly, leaving peasants starving.

The peasants resisted, but Lenin ordered the hanging of "no fewer than a hundred well-known kulaks and make sure the hanging takes place in full view of the people". Another revolt followed with peasants refusing to plant fields. Very poor harvests, thousands arrested - Bolsheviks were at war with the peasants. They set up concentration and labour camps. This shows not only that Lenin was very harsh at times, it also proves that the organs of the Stalinist police state were already in place before Stalin rose to lead the communists. Economics / Industry War Communism Civil war caused mass shortages of supplies, and worker committees could not run their factories - may voted themselves massive pay rises and would not allow the management to effectively run the factory.

Shortage of consumer goods resulting in inflation so the peasants would not sell their food without good to exchange for it. As well as this, the fertile Ukraine region was outside Bolshevik control. Feb 1918, bread ration in Petrograd down to 50 grams per person per day. Food riots, many workers left cities. So Lenin introduced war communism: May 1918, a 'Food Supplies Dictatorship's et up to forcibly requisition grain from peasant. Private trade and manufacturing banned.

State trading market chaotic so most people resorted to a huge black market. Nationalisation of industry. Administered by Vesenkha and committees were replaced by the original managers - the bourgeois 'former people'. Not all workers against this - even they saw it was necessary, if only for them to keep their jobs. Labour discipline Internal passports re-introduce (like under the Tsars) to stop workers leaving factories and returning to the countryside. Bonuses and piece-work rates brought back and a work book needed to get rations.

Rationing: Classed based, Labour force and red army given priority, professionals like doctors and civil servants next, then the 'former people' (Burzhui - middle classes). 'Red terror'. (see violence etc. bit) NEP Five Year Plans Stalin's Personality: In power from 1924-53 Aggressive - "We are bound by no laws. There are no fortresses the Bolsheviks cannot storm". - Joseph Stalin Opposition Communism The manifesto: the 10 points Lenin's Policies. In 1918, the Communists under Lenin were forced to conclude a disastrous peace treaty with Germany, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, under which Russia lost much of its western territories. (The treaty was later nullified.) They also had to fight a civil war, which lasted until 1921, against anti-Communist forces, who wished to undo the October Revolution.

Nicholas II and the royal family became victims of the civil war; taken prisoner after the revolution, they were murdered by the Communists in July 1918. Lenin at first sought to achieve socialism by taking complete control of the economy. But he soon recognised that he had acted too hastily. With the economy in ruins and the regime facing revolt, he introduced the New Economic Policy (NEP) in 1921. Under the NEP, peasants were allowed to farm as they pleased, small private businesses flourished, and trade revived. In 1922 the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was officially founded.

The Stalin Era. When Lenin died in 1924, he was succeeded as Soviet leader by Joseph Stalin. Under Stalin, farms were forcibly collectivized, industry national ised, and many new factories built. Collectivisation of agriculture, in which farms were joined together, was achieved at a dreadful human cost, and poor production led to the deaths of millions of people from starvation. While heavy industry grew under state control and the strength of the armed forces increased greatly, the standard of living of the peasants and working class fell sharply.

During the 1930's, Stalin began a series of purges that led to the deaths of many old Bolsheviks, most of the former leadership of the Communist Party, labour leaders, and nearly all of the senior officer corps. It is estimated that Stalin was responsible for the deaths of more than 20 million of his own people. Millions more were sent to labour camps, where many died under the harsh conditions. none.