Joseph Stalin's Power

One of the characteristics of Totalitarianism is propaganda. Stalin ruled by terror and with a totalitarian grip in order to get rid of anyone who might oppose him. Stalin expanded the power of the secret police, and encouraged citizen to spy on one another and millions killed and sent to forced labor camps. Stalin had a cult of personality built around himself in the Soviet Union. Cities were renamed in his honor; Soviet history books were rewritten to give him a more important role in the revolution and mythologize parts of life. He was the subject artwork, literature, music, and his name actually became a part of their national anthem. His government controlled the Soviet Media which had a lot to do with propaganda.

The society and environment that he developed in as a child was a pivotal in the formation of his renowned, stern character. Joseph Stalin was born into a poor family in Georgia 1879. Throughout his childhood, Stalin and his mother were both subjugated to violence and domestic abuse from his alcoholic father. , this undeniably would have additionally lead to Stalin's tyrannical persona and totalitarian governance. Throughout Josephs life he was groomed to be a priest, he was enrolled in numerous church schools and was even indoctrinated into the Tiflis theological seminary school in Georgia's capital. During this period of history there was a rapid increase for the russification of neighbouring Slavic states, like Georgia under orders of the Russian czar, this in turn may have also lead to Stalin's hate towards the tsarist monarchy and participation in revolutionary groups during later years. For most life in the seminary school was a tedious, structured routine in which students were only allowed to read books approved by the schools authorities, this further sparked his hatred towards authority and continued through his own political thought. As well as

Joseph Stalin was the most controversial person in Russia who has come into power. This has come from his 5 year plan that he has assembled when Russia was in shambles, due to the civil war, the economy failing, and no industrial equipment. His job now was to restore Russia and make it into an industrial powerhouse.

Joseph Stalin used his intellect, and power, to outmanoeuvre his rivals to become leader of the Soviet Union. Using carefully planned propaganda including, painting, statues, and a series of cultivated posters Stalin immortalised and glorified his leadership. These state-manufactured images created a ‘cult of personality' around him, subsequently, creating an image of a heroic worshipped figure, who was associated with every aspect of soviet society. Stalin controlled the media and according to the historian Moshe Lewin, Stalin single handily, ‘become the system,’ (Lewin in Pittaway, 2008, p.137.)

Part of what helped Stalin attain so much power and therefore get so corrupt was all of this taking advantage of not completely set rules. But why did he want to take advantage of this for power? He did this because of his power-hungry personality.

Following the death of Vladimir Lenin, Stalin utilized the political divisions within the Russian government to gain power. Firstly, Stalin was given the position of Commissar of Nationalities, which entitled the power of patronage. After Lenin died, Stalin competed with other members of the Politburo for power, however he was able to use the power of patronage to extend privileges to his supporters and isolate his competitors. This power allowed him support himself within politics and attributed to his own rise in leadership. Also, Stalin utilized the political divisions between his fellow members of the Politburo, as seen by the triumvirate that he formed. This bloc within the Politburo consisted of Stalin, Kamenev, and Zinoviev and had the

In The Prince Machiavelli wrote about the different ways a prince could attain his position and how he should maintain that position. One of the topics he discusses is “Of those who have attained the position of prince by villainy”. This is a good example of how Stalin came into his power. The Soviet Union was founded in 1922, with Lenin as its leader. During that time Stalin climbed up the party ladder and secured a job that enabled him to appoint his allied government jobs letting him grow a base of political

One of the most important reasons why Stalin won the power struggle is that he used his high positions in the Communist party and the power that came with it to his advantage. Several factors fall under this category. Firstly is how Stalin used his position as General Secretary, as well as jealousies between the leaders and Trotsky’s illness to stage-manage Lenin’s funeral. To the general public, it appeared that Stalin was very close to Lenin, and as a result

Joseph Stalin, from the time that he was a low level revolutionary to the years that he spent as the dictator of the Soviet Union, always knew what he needed to do to achieve his goals. His organized rise to power allowed him to gain a steady flow of followers who would support him for decades to come. Stalin received a minor government position in 1917, but by the time a new leader was needed in 1924, he “had turned the largely routine post of Party general secretary into the most powerful office in the Soviet Union” (“Joseph Stalin) and “had built a personal empire for himself through his control over committee appointments at all levels . . . expand[ing] the leading Party organs with his supporters, who then voted against his rivals”

Prior to his rise to power, Joseph Stalin’s early life had a large impact on his future as a leader of the Soviet Union. Stalin was born into a dysfunctional family in Gori, Georgia on December 21, 1879 (Joseph Stalin pbs.org). His real name however, was Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili. Then changed his last name to Stalin because he combined the Russian word stal, which means steel, and Lenin, the name of the Soviet Union leader at the time (jewishvituallibrary.org). In keeping with his strong name, Stalin contracted and even survived smallpox at a young age, but with the only remaining evidence being a facial scar from where the smallpox where it had formed at. Stalin was sent to a seminary in Tiflis, now known as Tbilisi, to become a priest. However, Stalin never completed his education and soon became involved in the city’s active revolutionary circle ,

Joseph Stalin greatly influenced Russia in the years 1924 through 1932. His rise to this power can be explained by the Russian Revolutionary experience that allowed him to gain authority in Russia. Although historians often refer to Stalin as a ruthless, mindless dictator, he redirected the Russian Revolution to major economic development. Stalin’s character in Russia during the Revolution catalyzed the many events that took place during the time period. Because of Stalin’s ability to both appeal to the masses, and take advantage of events, like Lenin’s death, Stalin was able to rise to power. Essentially, the Russian Revolution fostered the development of Stalin’s dictatorship leading the country into a state of economic growth and influence. The Revolution fostered Stalin’s ability to maintain a central leadership, use violence to gain control, and regenerate a previously disconnected economy.

Why was Joseph Stalin a dictator? If he wasn't a dictator, nobody has ever been. He had total control of the country, where people worked, where they lived, even what crops were planted and what was sold, and anybody who spoke out against the Communist party, or Stalin could be imprisoned or killed. Millions were killed under Stalin, some say even more than under Hitler, mainly because the Soviet Union was such a vast country. So, Joseph Stalin (1878-1953) was the dictator of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) from 1929 to 1953. Under Stalin, the Soviet Union was transformed from a peasant society into an industrial and military superpower. However, he ruled by terror, and millions of his own citizens died during his brutal reign. Born into poverty, Stalin became involved in revolutionary politics, as well as criminal activities, as a young man."( Robert Service, A History of 20th Century Russia (1997))"

Stalin served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1953(the year of his death). Initially starting with a limited power position, Staling rapidly gained power and became the party’s declared leader.

The events which led to Stalin’s rise to power were not simple and it was

Josef Stalin’s ability to manipulate and his paranoia of losing power Throughout the history of the USSR, Josef Stalin has been a communist leader from 1925 to 1953. He was a dictator, which killed many innocent people and sent huge populations to labor camps just to do what he wants and to keep his power, just after he gets to power. His policies right after he gets Lenin’s place and during the purges clearly shows that how paranoid he is about keeping his power and protecting his connection with people of USSR with somewhat manipulating them and protecting his position as the party leader in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. During the Great Purge, with the start of Josef Stalin’s policies, everyday life for the people of the USSR