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Stalin: Man or Monster

Source A is a cartoon published in Paris in the 1930s. It shows Stalin and the results of his policies according to the artist. The cartoon features Stalin showing three pyramids of skulls as if he was a tour guide. The caption under reads, Visitez LURSS ses pyramides! This translates to, Visit the pyramids of the USSR! This source is very famous and was drawn by an exiled Russian, therefore the artist could be bitter and biased against Stalin and his policies. Source B is an official Soviet painting of Stalin with workers at a hydroelectric power station in the 1930s. It is trying to show the results of industrialization.

It shows Stalin talking to the workers, they seem very proud to be meeting Stalin. Because it is an official Soviet painting it is very likely to be biased and a source of propaganda as it would be Stalin or the government who commissioned it. Source C is a photograph of Stalin congratulating wives of army officers. The women are reaching for Stalin in a fanatical manner; they seem desperate to touch him. The source is a photograph, which gives the impression that it is a reliable source. However this isnt true, Stalin could have had the photograph doctored or had people pose and claimed it was showing something it wasnt.

The sources give very different impressions of Stalin. Source A shows Stalin to be a monster responsible for the death of millions of people. Stalins policies were responsible for the death of millions of people. Collectivization caused the death of thousands of Kulaks and left many homeless and starving. One million people were executed during the purges, two million people died in camps, one million people died in prison and eight million people died as a result of the work ethic Stalin began. Source B shows Stalin to be a great man who made Russian industry prosper.

Stalins industrialization did make Russia a very successful industrial country. By the late 1930s many Soviet workers had improved their conditions by gaining well-paid skilled jobs and earning bonuses for meeting targets. There was an almost non-existent unemployment rate. Stalin also encouraged woman to work by setting up childcare services; four out of five new workers recruited between 1932 and 1937 were women. Stalin also made education compulsory and free for all. However the source does not show the negative side of Stalins industrialization. Life was very hard, factory conditions were very dangerous.

Any kind of discipline problems such as lateness or absence would be punished with sacking, which could also mean the loss of homes. Source C shows Stalin to be a caring man who was congratulating the wives of his army officers. It shows him to be admired, even idolized by his people and put in a hero like position. This is a good representation of some Russian peoples view of Stalin. Many people saw him as the hero of Russia and a very great man. However many opposed Stalin and his policies, but in voicing their view they could be punished with death.

Stalin had one million people executed during the purges. Many of the people executed had opposed Stalin but were accused of crimes such as spying and plotting to murder. Many others were sent to labour camps. However, sources B and C are similar in some ways. They both show Stalin to be a great man who cared about his people and was prepared to talk to them. They also show Stalin to be greatly admired by his people and thought of as the hero of Russia. In conclusion, the sources are very different in the impression they give of Stalin. However both source B and source C share some similarities.

Although the sources seem very different they show how people saw Stalin. Some people idolized him, while others thought he was fiend like dictator. Does this source provide any useful evidence about Stalin? Explain your answer. Source D was written by Stalin in 1945. This means the source will give good representation of how Stalin portrayed himself within the U. S. S. R at this time. It will also be biased, as Stalin would be trying to improve his public image after the measures he had taken during his reign. The evidence suggests that Stalin wasnt at all how he portrays himself in the source.

In the source Stalin is describing a time he spent in Siberia in exile. He is using the example to try make him look good and the old leaders look like tyrants. The source is describing an event that took place in Siberia during the spring floods, the river had swollen and some of the men had gone the pull out timber that had been washed away by the river. When they returned one of the men was missing. Stalin describes the man as Comrade which is a communist word for brother showing that he thought of this man as equal, an attempt at showing he was a true communist not a dictator.

Stalin showed concern for the man asking where he was, the simply replied that he remained at the river. Stalin, again trying to improve his public image goes on to say that the men didnt have any interest in the man saying he asked them what they meant by that. They replied by saying, He drowned of course. The men hurried off saying they had to water the mare. He goes on, When I told them off for having more concern for animals than men. He is trying to justify his actions by showing that in this case he had a very good reason for taking action against the men.

The men then go on to say why should we be concerned about men? We can always make another man. Stalin uses this story to say that the lack of concern these men had was like that of the leaders, It seems to me that the lack of concern our leaders show towards the people is the same attitude I met in far-off Siberia. The manner in which the Stalin tells the story is similar to a parable, the story has a moral meaning behind it. The source shows some interesting things about Stalin, it shows that Stalin had the means to broadcast these kinds of stories about his past.

It also shows that he had the power to make people believe these things. Which of these two sources is the more reliable? Explain your answer. Source E is from a speech by a writer to the Congress of Soviets in 1935 and was published in Pravda, the paper of the Communist Party. From this we know that the source is going to be very censored as everything that was published in Pravda was heavily censored, it is also written by a Communist for a Communist paper so it will be nothing but positive things about the party. Source F is a speech made by Bukharin in Paris in 1936.

Bukharin was a supporter of Stalin against Trotsky. This was because Trotsky wanted world wide Communism whereas Stalin and Bukharin wanted one country Communism. He fell into disgrace in 1929 and was executed in the Purges in 1938. This information shows that the source will be biased as Bukharin disliked everything about Stalin and would be trying to show everyone how evil he was. Source E is a speech that is extremely complimentary of Stalin. It is thanking Stalin for everything, claiming him to be the greatest man that ever lived.

The source contains many repetitions, which is an effective way of putting across a point. It contains many praising words about Stalin and statements which are monomaniacal and a very exaggerated way to describe anyone. Generations to come will regard us as the happiest of people because we lived in the same century as Stalin, The source is a good example of how some people idolized Stalin and his persona became, in some cases, an example of the Cult of the Individual. And when the woman I love presents me with a child the first word it shall utter will be: Stalin.

This is a very fanatical statement, as most people would want their childs first word to be Mummy or daddy, this shows that the man has totally disregarded himself for Stalin. Every word in this source is exaggerated. However source F has a contrasting view of Stalin. The source is a speech made by Bukharin in 1936. Bukharin disliked Stalin because he had used him to become the leader then turned on him when hed got rid of him. He started off by opposing Stalin then after Stalin had turned against Kamenev and Zinoviev Stalin allied himself with Bukharin.

They were united in the idea of Socialism in One Country, whereas Trotsky wanted worldwide communism to ensure the security of The USSR. Once Stalin had got rid of Trotsky, Stalin turned on Bukharin using the same arguments Trotsky had used before. Bukharin was expelled from the Communist Party in 1929, leaving him bitter because of how hed been used. Bukharin was executed during the Purges in 1938. He was accused of spying for Japan and Germany and also plotting with Trotsky. He was killed along with other Bolsheviks, Kamenev and Zinoviev who confessed to being traitors of the state.

Bukharin was friends with Lenin and was responsible for the NEP, he knew what Lenin really thought f Stalin which scared Stalin. He tried very hard to ensure nobody knew how Lenin thought of him. The source suggests that Bukharin knew Stalin would eventually have him killed somehow. The comments made in the source are derogatory towards Stalin. The source is an attempt at unmasking Stalins true evilness. It is revealing Stalins insecurity about his ability as leader. Stalin is unhappy at not being able to convince everyone, himself included, that he is greater than everyone else.

This suggests that Stalin was incredibly insecure about anyone being better than he is. This is proven in his actions during the Purges. Here he got rid of anyone who was a threat. The source is almost a prophecy of his own fate. If someone speaks better than he does, that man is for it! Stalin will not let him live, Bukharin knew that he was a good politician and was an opponent for Stalin. Bukharin speaks openly against Stalin knowing this could be dangerous, He is a narrow-minded, malicious man no not a man, but a devil. In conclusion both the sources are unreliable because they are both very opinionated.

However source F is slightly more reliable because it wasnt published under the influence of the government. How far do these sources agree about Stalins show trials? Source I is an American cartoon about Stalins show trials. Americans generally oppose Communism. Source J is also a cartoon but was published in France in the late 1930s. The purges began in 1934 when the leader of the Leningrad, Kirov, was murdered. Stalin used the murder as a reason to purge the opponents in the party. It is believed that Stalin had arranged Kirovs murder to use it as an excuse.

Many leading figures were purged by confessing to being traitors and were executed. The purges were aimed at Party members to begin with, 500,000 were arrested and executed or sent to labour camps. After the trails the purges were extended. By 1937 estimations show that 18 million people from all backgrounds, had been sent to labour camps. Source I shows the courtroom at Stalins show trails. It shows Stalin as the judge and the defendants appear to be Yagoda, Zinoviev, Kamenev and Bukharin. These people were all executed during the purges of the 1930s.

Yagoda was in the NKVD and was accused of spying for Japan and Germany and plotting to murder Lenin. Zinoviev and Kamenev helped with Stalins rise to power but also were used by Stalin to do this. Zinoviev was accused of plotting with Trotsky against Stalin and Kamenev was accused of the murder of Kirov and plotting to murder Stalin. Bukharin was responsible, along with Lenin for the NEP and also allied with Stalin over One Country Communism during his leadership campaign when Trotsky wanted Worldwide Communism. Stalin then turned on Bukharin and expelled him from the Communist party.

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