Shandee Ballard Ryan Snelgrove English 12 14 September 2017 The Mad Monk of Russia The czarina, or queen of Russia was so very saddened as she watched her son cry out in agonizing pain. He had fallen or gotten a bruise that had caused major internal bleeding because of his condition of Hemophilia. He would ask his mother, “When I am dead, it will not hurt anymore, will it?” A man then walked in and brought with him a calming presence. He touched the poor boy’s forehead and his cries subsided. The czarina was astonished and only could think of one way he could have done this miracle: her prayers had been answered and he had been sent to her by God (Frost). This man’s name was Rasputin. Rasputin became a trusted advisor of the czarina because of who he was and he received more and more power because of this connection to the crown of Russia. Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin was born around 1872 in the village of Pokrovskoe in Siberia, Russia (Frost). He was born into a peasant family seemingly destined for an ordinary life. He married a local woman Praskovya Dubrovina and worked on his farm (Harris). Rasputin began to have an interest in religion and stayed at a monastery for many months and changed. He came out as a “restless, agitated, depressed, and ecstatic” person and he started to travel many pilgrimages on foot that spanned all over Europe and Asia. He was very dedicated to his religious career. He became a holy man that many differents Russians would come to to seek
Rasputin was a man who lived in sin. He believed that by doing so, one would obtain pardon by the almighty. He would drink, party through the night, and sleep with
Ivan IV, also known as “Ivan the Terrible,” lived from 1530 to 1584 and was the first Tsar of Russia. He officially reigned from the age of three; however, he did not have any real power until he crowned himself “Tsar” of Russia in 1547. He went on to conquer vast amounts of neighboring territories, eventually controlling the largest empire in the world at the time. In addition to increasing the Russian Tsardom’s size, he also completely restructured the political system. He took away all power from the noble boyar elite, and became an absolute monarch. This was good because the boyars at the time had been corrupt, and more interested in their personal interests than the interests of the state (Ivan the Terrible).
Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin was an infamous Siberian ‘holy man’, whose ability to cure the Tsar and Tsarina’s son of haemophilia led to him becoming an important friend and spiritual advisor to the Romanov royal family (Duffy, 2009). Rasputin was a paradox, by day he was a supreme mystic at court and at night he obtained a reputation as a notorious drunk and philanderer (Rae & Thompson, 2014). By 1916 Rasputin was viewed by many as a malevolent puppeteer who infiltrated his way into the royal family, pulling the strings of the Tsar’s wife and manipulating the regime (Rae & Thompson, 2014). While his influence and status may have been overstated — Rasputin became an obvious scapegoat for Russian aristocrats, liberals and nationalists, synonymous with debauchery, lust and power — his presence brought considerable shame and discredit to the tsarist government (Moss, 2003). The dominant viewpoint that Rasputin was the sole reason behind the decay of the Romanov reign is presented by Mikhail Rodzianko, Chairman of the Duma, who stated that “The appearance in [the royal] court of Grigory Rasputin, and the influence he exercised there, mark the beginning of the decay of Russian society and the loss of prestige for the throne and for the person of the Tsar himself”. However, although Rasputin’s company played a significant role in the increasing unpopularity of the Imperial couple, he was purely a symbol of Russian despotism and not a central character in the downfall of the Romanov
How does a leader gain and maintain the love of his people when he is killing them in mass numbers? Joseph Stalin was successful in this by following the political tactic of using fear to gain love. A tactic that was highly valued by Nicolo Machiavelli in his work The Prince. “In Arthur Koestler’s Darkness at Noon, the main character, and Old Bolshevik, Nikolaiz Rubashov, declares that “Number one” (Stalin) kept Machiavelli’s The Prince as his favorite night-table book” (Tisemanean). Stalin’s strategy of leadership can be closely compared to the strategies that Machiavelli describes in The Prince. A work that received much controversy over the lessons it preached to political leaders. It coined the phrase “the end justify the means” which follows as a consequence of considering vice a virtue. Stalin used many vices to gain and maintain his state till the day he died. Alexsandr Solzhenitsyn work, The First Circle, showcased how even on death’s door Stalin still used traits treasured in a Machiavellian prince. This paper will assess how Stalin follows Machiavelli’s guidelines for a prince in the areas of war, fear, crime, and in dealing with the people.
On a day to day bases, men and women in prison or jail are dehumanized and terrorized by their superiors or even their inmates in the Criminal Justice System. The inmates that are in this situation are usually physically, emotionally, and mentally abused, they are often deprived of meals and are belittled. The inmates in this situation have no other choice but adapt to their best ability of the harsh situation they are founded in or be broken and taken over by the system they are forced to be a part of. Is it true that a person in difficult situations needs to be indifferent of their past because being nostalgic can only hurt them? Or does the harsh situation they become a custom to make it easier to forget their past life?. Solzhenitsyn uses Shukhov’s indifferent attitude towards his past to illustrate that a person cannot be nostalgic because it can lead to one’s self-destruction.
During the late seventeenth century Russia underwent drastic transformations in order to westernize their medieval states. The idea of westernization caused chaos within the Imperial Empire; people in power were mentally unstable and would travel outside of palace gates in order to get what they wanted, a determined and curious young boy came into power changing everything, and a young lady not of Russian blood became queen and finalized everything.
It is plausible to suggest that Joseph Stalin was essentially a Red Tsar. Whilst Stalin was committed to communism, his ideology and authoritarian reign was reminiscent of the Tsarist autocratic rule that proceeded him. For nearly six centuries Russia was ruled under a Tsarist autocratic government until it was overthrown during the 1917 revolution that led to the introduction of the first communist government in Russia and the leadership of Joseph Stalin. During his reign, Stalin enacted a ‘cult of personality’ in which he was worshipped as a god-like being similar to that of the autocratic Tsars who ruled before him. Likewise, there were immense similarities in the social structures and quality of life for Russia’s people under the reign of the last Tsar, Nicholas II, and Joseph Stalin. There is considerable evidence therefore to support the idea that Joseph Stalin was essentially a Red Tsar.
The theme of manipulation and deceit in Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Emily Bronte’s wuthering heights. Men and women have many ways of betraying and manipulating their peers and lovers. Women often become too manipulative in their relationships. Manipulation is seldom a good thing to do to a spouse.
This paragraph will go through if the media are bias and use the example of newspaper endorsements and its effects on voting. According to recent survey data over a half of voters believe that the American media is biased. But another forty percent say that they filter out the media because of how biased it is. Newspapers are driven by an economic motive more than a political motive, which is why it wouldn’t make sense for newspapers to just be biased without any real economic motive. The only real explanation for this is that newspapers are biased only towards what their consumers want to hear, and if consumers hear what they want to hear then they will keep buying the newspaper. Newspaper endorsements are a very popular method by newspapers
Rasputin was a peasant born in 1872 in Siberian village known as Pokrovskoe. His name at his birth was Grigori Efimovich Novykh. Grigori’s reputation for his addiction to sex “earned him the surname Rasputin, Russian for ‘debauched one’” (Grigory).
Nicholas II was known, not only for being the Emperor of Russia but also for his character and personality which undoubtably led him to his own downfall. Nicholas was often referred to as not being ready to become Tsar as well as being a weak leader. Firstly, Nicholas II himself, amongst a very large proportion of Russian society, believed that he was not prepared to be coronated Emperor. Nicholas himself stated “What is going to happen to me and all of Russia? I am not prepared to be a Tsar. I never wanted to become one. I know nothing of the business of ruling.”. (Russian Revolution Quotations 2015). Nicholas was aware of what he was getting himself into and that he was not prepared for such a role. This is further corroborated by the
In the article, “The Nine Commandments,” David Noel Freedman unveils a connection between the ten commandments and the first nine books of the Bible. If Judges and Ruth are considered one book, and 1st and 2nd Samuel and Kings are each held as one book like they would have been in the Hebrew Bible, then there are nine books that make up the Primary History. Freedman discusses how each one of these books lends itself to one of the ten commandments and how Israel broke it. After the ten were all broken, then Israel and Judah are carted away into exile.
The television film by Uli Edel Rasputin: Dark Servant of Destiny (1996) is historically accurate to some degree. This film review will address three points: what was seen in the film, what Edel portrayed incorrectly in the film and examples of factors that lead to the fall of Czar that were disregarded by Edel in Rasputin. These points will discuss to what degree does Edel correctly portray the events leading up to Rasputin’s assassination and the death of the Imperial family. What we see in the film The film “Rasputin: Dark Servant of Destiny” directed by Uli Edel and written by Peter Price, is a biographical 1996 TV film which tells of the last four years (1912–16) of Czar’s reign.
Among the greatest mysteries of Russian history is the influence of the Mad Monk Grigori Rasputin. During his time in court 1907-1916, Rasputin developed a complex relationship with the ruling Romanovs and leading ministers due to his mystical ability to treat the hemophilia of the sole heir to the throne, Tsarevich Alexei.
Even when Raskolnikov was asleep he received painful messages of others who were suffering, just as he was. In one particular instance, before the double-murder, Raskolnikov is brought back to the poverty he suffered throughout his childhood. He once again feels a great empathy toward the suffered, but this time