One way in which the Communist dictatorship of Lenin and the Tsarist autocracy in the reign of Alexander the III were similar was in the respect of governmental power. In Alexander III's reign the Tsar ruled as an autocrat, which meant he held absolute power and made all the decisions for the country. Lenins' rule echoed this idea in the form of centralization, the political ideology in which power over a country is concentrated into the hands of one group, in this case the ruling Bolshevik party. Therefore, both governments held absolute power over Russia. Where the two governments differ is in the respect of tolerance towards cooperation with others.
However, after 1924, the USSR was a clear dictatorship, which meant that the culture was controlled by the élite and is used to portray the elite positively. There is no denying that culture performed a political role in the USSR in this time period, as culture is heavily effected by politics and vice versa, and so in this essay, I will be evaluating the extent to which Soviet culture performed a political role in the USSR in the years 1924-1953. Art performed a highly political role in the USSR in the years 1924-1953. In the early years of the Bolshevik state, experimental and abstract art was allowed under Lenin. This all changed however with the change in leadership after 1929 and the emergence of Stalin as the ‘vozhd’.
Under the Communists, Russia was governed by a form of dictatorship. Lenin, having seized power after the October 1917 Revolution, aimed to construct a Marxist-Leninist state, that would eventually lead to a ‘dictatorship of the proletariat’. Under Stalin, a command economy was implemented, which was based on centralised planning and collectivisation. Whilst this wasn’t dissimilar from Lenin, the personalisation of the ‘superstructure’ so that control was fully in the hands of Stalin was a notable difference. When in 1936 a
America viewed Communism as an evil belief to kill the rights and liberties of all mankind. Both sides believed that the other was seeking to dominate each other and the world. It was at this time that containment was made, and the United States began to add to the containment strategy. The U.S drafted its strategy for meeting the Soviet threat in 1947. George Kennan, an American serving
The Soviets strived for communism, where everyone, at least in principle, had equal shares and no one was above another, while the United states wanted to spread their values of democracy to re-developing countries across the globe. Communism was seen as such a threat to the United States because they believed the Communist Party wanted to spread and take over the entire world and the U.S. insisted that they were a force that must be stopped. The Invasion of the Body Snatchers was a key film, made during this time period that reflected greatly on the themes of the Cold War. In the film the protagonist, Miles, is a once sane, intelligent doctor who has been strung out, by many strange events that indicate an alien invasion is happening into a hysterical man. It starts out with relatives and children accusing loved ones that they’re not really themselves, that they have no emotions.
Period. 6 3/6/09 Benchmark #3 Study Guide Chapter 14- Revolution and Nationalism 1900-1930, All Section 430-457 1. Define totalitarianism and tell what a totalitarian state is? : Totalitarian is a form of government that controls over every aspect of public and private life and a totalitarian state a new kind of government in the 20th century that exercised massive, direct control over virtually all the activities, existed in Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union. 2.
In the 1960’s communism was trying to take over the world. Russia already took over many European countries and it was spreading too many parts of Asia. The definition of communism is “a theory or system of social organization based on the holding of all property in common, actual ownership being ascribed to the community as a whole or to the state. (dictionary.com)” In the 1950’s senator Joe McCarthy helped elevate the red scare with the trials he conducted. “Marxists indeed advocated that the world should become Communist, but not by hostile takeover.
These aspects that were the foundations in Hitler’s dictatorship were: a distinctive ‘utopian’ all embracing ideology which includes the conception of the Aryan race and the ‘kinder küche kirche’ program for German woman which both dominates and attempts to restructure all aspects of society, a political system headed by an all powerful leader which was Hitler; in which a cult of personality is created, party, parliament (Reichstag) and the state are under the control of the leader, the use of censorship and propaganda ( Josef Goebbles) aimed at controlling all aspects of culture and indoctrination of all sections of society especially the young ( Hitler youth). There is also a systematic use of coercion and terror through organizations such as Hitler’s SS ( Schutzstaffel), Gestapo and the SA (Sturmabteiling) in order to ensure total compliance and finally all decisions are made by the leader and the regime. Although Hitler’s dictatorship had all the central foundations of a totalitarian dictatorship in place, it can be argued that he himself was a weak dictator. At the time it seemed like a lot of the Nazi propaganda made was devoted to portraying the regime as a smooth state, with a hierarchy of power culminating in the illustration of the Fuhrer at its peak, Hitler as the strong leader above the
Essay Proposal: Q. proposal - Maintaining Power Through the use of Terror: Stalin. Introduction/Agenda This essay will show how power was maintained by Stalin once he had established himself as the single leader of the USSR. The essay will mainly focus of the most effective method; use of terror, coercion and fear. And how he is used this to control the party and state and eliminate his opponents The essay will explore who Stalin believed he faced opposition from including from within his own party, how effectively he dealt with them and the role his own paranoia played. Finally the essay will look at the effectiveness of the use of terror but also the international repercussions for Stalin and communism.
The Pravda controlled what media was available to the public and who could utilize it. The Bolsheviks were in reality the only group aloud to publish propaganda, and groups such as the Mensheviks, were not aloud to publish. These rules meant that no negative material about the Bolsheviks could legally be published, and all the public would ever see, would be positive Bolshevik propaganda, increasing their support. This is a key characteristic of a Totalitarian state, and it’s evidence that the Bolsheviks had successfully created a Totalitarian state. Another common aspect of a totalitarian state, is the establishment of a secret police force.