Omar Al-Ayoub

Block 3

December 17, 2009

IB HL History Year 2

The years of 1917 to 1953 marked the Bolshevik era of Russia. In this period, Russia was to go through drastic political, social, and economic change, under the rule of two political figures, Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin. In its pre-Revolutionary years, Russia had been in evident economic desperation and political instability, appearing as a backwards nation in the midst of an advancing western Europe. Lenin and Stalin, both brought apparent accomplishments to Russian society in their years of rule, in which Russia, as a country, grew out of the incapacities that had until then diminished it’s status. Yet, examining the essence of Bolshevik power in Russia, it becomes clear that in establishing evident economic and political advancement, other aspects of society were totally neglected. Lenin and Stalin led Russia, on a social level, through a harsh era that primarily exploited the Russian people as a whole. Indeed the Bolsheviks seemed to diverge immensely from the fundamentals of communism, and though claimed to work in benefit of the people, ended up destroying them. Lenin and Stalin were mainly concerned with the establishment of their dictatorship, through whatever means possible needed to eliminate opposition. Thus, although successful strictly in the sense of Russian industrialization and political stability relative to its state before these two figures, the Bolsheviks led the Russian people into wretched lifestyles that were not resolved during the regime. In other words, what was accomplished by Lenin and Stalin appears minimal compared to the humanitarian at which done. Leninism gave way to Stalinism, and Russia was bound to follow the absolutism of their policies for fifty years of an unreliable government.

        

After the abdication of the tsar in March 1917, the Provisional Government, made up of the Duma and the Petrograd Soviet took control of the Russian government. Though the tsarist regime had been eradicated, the same problems remained in Russian Society: economic failure, famine, political unrest, and a government incapable of dealing with such issues. It seemed that Russia had entered yet a new period of successive failures. With the publicly loathed decision to continue fighting in the First World War, the provisional government became a representation of military embarrassment and army desertion. As the Petrograd Soviet commanded all army officers to solely obey the soviet, it was clear that the army had now resigned their support to the Provisional Government. In any case, when Lenin and the Soviet overthrew the Provisional Government in November 1917, Russia  was in a state of “general chaos” (MacMillan, 35.) and was desperately in need of reform. Lenin’s coup strived to introduce a new soviet government in which he would have ultimate control. A chaotic Russian state was the basis on which Lenin would develop his policies: some would benefit Russia, and others would exploit its people.

In terms of economics, Lenin’s policies from the period of 1917 to 1924 proved little success for Russia’s economy, though they offered determined aims for the country’s recovery. As Stephen Lee states, “The Bolsheviks came to power intending to introduce sweeping economic changes to wipe out ‘all exploitation of man by man’ and to eliminate ‘the division of society into classes.’ (Lee, 36.) Truly, Lenin’s economic reforms would be directed essentially towards the aim to annihilate counter-revolutionary action and assure total control of society by the Soviets, reinforcing Lenin’s eventual dictatorship. Indeed, Leninist economics began with a colossal failure known as War Communism introduced in 1918. War Communism was a drastically strict approach, which put severe centralized control of all forms of economic production and distribution, Money was printed excessively, causing rapid hyperinflation and shortages in the countryside, “War communism had been unpopular with the peasants who, seeing no point in working hard to produce food which was taken away from them without compensation, simply produced enough for their own needs. This caused severe food shortages aggravated by droughts in 1920.” (Tarr, 36.) Clearly, War Communism plunged Russian society into further chaos, and was initially set out to “mobilize the resources of the state in its struggle for survival against counter-revolutionary forces.”, hence neglecting the country’s actual benefit, for truly, there was none. Perhaps the positive side to War Communism was that it enforced the stability of the communist state, therefore reducing the political unrest that had disturbed the peace in Russian society. Yet, there is “the view that War Communism, far from being a temporary if unpleasant necessity, was a fundamental error.” (Lee, 37) War Communism had been essentially a social issue, which exploited upon the lives of the Russian people and had damaging long-term effects, “This was successful at first, in that it enabled the government to survive the civil war, but it had disastrous results later.” (Lowe, 39.) By 1921, War Communism had brought Russia “on the verge of chaos” (Tarr, 35.)

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        With the failure of War Communism, Lenin opted for a new approach to Russian economics and introduced what was known as the New Economic Policy (NEP). Under the NEP, private ownership of small industries was  allowed and confiscation of surplus goods in the countryside was banned. Also, although the government still had control over heavy industry and foreign trade, the NEP legalized free trade, and restored the stability of the soviet currency. Unlike War Communism, the NEP proved itself successful to some extent, considering the quantitative improvements recorded in the Russian economy. For example, as coal production had dropped to ...

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