GLH+P4+2014-15+Joseph+Stalin

Hsin-Yu Chen - Historical As a Communist leader, Joseph Stalin ruled the Soviet Union for 24 years, until dying from a stroke in 1953. His works lead to the deaths of millions of people from the start of joining the “militant wing of the Marxist Social Democratic movement, the Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin" as History.com states (“Joseph Stalin”). He used many illegal forms of funding for the Bolshevik party, leading the overthrow of the provisional government. Eventually given Lenin‘s trust through “political support”, Joseph Stalin was to help take control of the Soviet Union. 2 years later, Lenin died, and Stalin enabled the 5-year plan and collectivization to turn Russia into an ultimate powerhouse. Unfortunately, with his manipulative power, he commits to creating communism through a series of purges, terrorizing citizens; forces those unwilling to devote their time into transitioning the country through labor camps down to executions of supposedly “aligning with capitalist nations, [and] convicted of being ‘enemies of the people’” ("Joseph Stalin Biography"). During his reign, Russia turned to industrialization, but did not help to create a friendly government, turning nations to suspect the Soviet Union and leaving famished peasants to work until debilitated to work. Thus, Stalin’s communism was a regrettable totalitarian ruling that left the Soviet Union as a weakening superpower. Hannah Morse - Cultural Joseph Stalin is a beacon for the communist party and is viewed by many as its most influential member. Coming into power as leader in 1924 after the death of Lenin, Stalin ruled with an iron fist and left his subjects terrified, or at least this is true according to history books. Stalin has become closely connotated with communism and its ideals, and his legacy has shaped the way many view communism today. In capitalist America, most of the population believes communism to be a fairly negative economic system to have to deal with. It is often represented by “the Iron Curtain, the planned market and not-so-free peoples everywhere” (Evans). Even the Russian population itself has a view of Stalin that could be different from the facts, as “in Russian society, there is no rational understanding of Stalin’s role” (Dubin). Although many peoples’ opinions on Stalin may vary, many will agree that he was a powerful and intimidating leader; because he was communist, many believe that communism is directly connected to why he executed his leadership the way he did. People’s perception of communist culture has been deeply affected because of Stalin’s massive role in communist values.

Davian Peterson - Aim Joseph Stalin essentially wanted to take over the world. His views were strictly communist and he wanted to spread it across the entire globe. Russia lost a lot of land in World War I and when he took power, his primary goal was to take back the land and expand even past that afterwards. The only way he could do this was with a strong military. This would ensure that Russia could eliminate any threat to itself before they became too strong. Germany and the Allied Forces were all growing rapidly due to industrialization and falling behind would put an end to Stalin’s dream. As Chris Trueman states, “A strong economy would lead to a strong military if Russia was going to survive threats from external forces” (Trueman). Stalin truly intended to make everyone’s lives better in this communist society that he worked so hard to achieve but he believed the only way this could happen was if total control and conformity took place.

Mikaylah Mitchell - Audience For the most part, the citizens of Russia were the basic audience of Stalin throughout his rule. However, Joseph Stalin’s difficult government style led to his followers questioning him. Having this issue, he conducted events that created a new audience in places such as Russia’s allies, enemies, and future generations of the world. In the //Jewish Virtual Library//, the information presented explains for future generations that the Great Purges were Stalin’s responsibility in order for him to rise to power. Whereas during the time of Stalin’s life, the audience was its citizens, allies, and enemies like when Joseph created the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact with Germany to show alliance and agreement with Nazi Germany. Knowing these two pieces of information shows the relationships between Stalin and who he wanted as an audience. During the time of the Great Purges, no one truly knew the truth so its more pointed towards the future generations due to the truth being unraveled by that point of time. But during the alliances made with Nazi Germany at the time showed Russia’s citizens that Stalin agreed with Germany and wanted to point out who its enemies were and who its allies were at that point. Having this knowledge helps narrow the spectrum of who Stalin’s main audience were; which turns out to be the citizens of Russia during Stalin’s rule, the future generation of learning from mistakes, and Russia’s allies and enemies to prove Joseph’s area of what he believed in and thought was right and wrong.

Works Cited Evans, C.T. "America's Understanding of Communism." Notes on America's Understanding of Communism. N.p., 2010. Web. 06 Oct. 2014. "Joseph Stalin." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2014. "Joseph Stalin." Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2014. "Joseph Stalin Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2014. Montefiore, Simon. "Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar." New York City: Random House Digital, 2005. Web. 14 Feb. 2012. Rummel, R.J. "20,946,000 Victims: Nazi Germany." Nazi Genocide and Mass Murder. University of Hawaii, Nov. 1993. Web. 13 Feb. 2012. Rummel, R.J. "How Many Did Communist Regimes Murder?." Murder by Communism. University of Hawaii, Nov. 1993. Web. 13 Feb. 2012. Ruvinsky, Vladimir. "Josef Stalin: Revered and Reviled in Modern Russia." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 15 June 2012. Web. 06 Oct. 2014. Trueman, Chris. "Joseph Stalin." Joseph Stalin. History Learning Site, 2006. Web. 05 Oct. 2014.