For years after Lenin’s death it was common for Stalin to praise Lenin and align himself with Lenin in speeches. “It was quite safe to flatter Lenin once he was dead – sometimes dead men are more useful than living ones,” Woods quotes. Stalin was very calculating in his choice of how he connected himself to Lenin’s life and work. “Some parts of Lenin’s life had to be de-emphasized and others rearranged, modified, or touched up to put Stalin in the idealized picture” (Tucker 364). The people of the Soviet Union believed that Stalin was Lenin’s chosen successor and would continue on with Leninism. He was seen as Lenin’s disciple and servant to the party. “Stalin is the Lenin of Today” became a commonly used phrase.
At first, Stalin assumed a modest image, appearing as a hard working man of moderation. After winning over the working people and peasants with this image he began an intense campaign to help the people recognize him. Books, poetry, art and movies were all produced to depict a great leader for the people. Anything that could be harming to his image was prohibited. In 1943 Warner Brothers produced the movie “Mission to Moscow”. This movie created the caring leader of the country and downplaying all his ruthlessness. A BBC news reporter describes the movie:
Stalin is portrayed as the father figure of the Soviet Union – a giant of a man responsible for massive projects of industrialization. And the Stalinist purges, when tens of thousands of innocent people suffered, are glossed over as implicitly necessary for the security of the state.
Poets wrote praises to Stalin and artists were forced to produce works that glorified him and the Soviet State. He even required artists to touch up his flaws to make him look more pleasing. Photographs were also a very important part of news coverage during Stalin’s regime. Many photos were “manipulated to alter historical events” (newseum). Political enemies, many who had been killed, were airbrushed out of photos. “Generations of Russians learned false versions of history” (newseum). Anything that Stalin did not approve of was destroyed. In order for Stalin’s “cult” to thrive there was no room for any discriminating or bad publicity.
By 1930 Stalin’s “cult” was well underway. After speeches the applause for Stalin would go on forever. Nobody wanted to be the first to stop. Various towns and cities across the country were renamed in honour of Stalin. One of the most well known name changes was Stalingrad which previously was Tsaritsyn. The people of the Soviet Union admired and respected Stalin. The people called him by many names which reflected this admiration, some examples were Father of the People, The Wise Helmsman, and The Best Disciple of Comrade Lenin (264 Rappaport).
Late in 1934 Stalin launched a new campaign of terror against the Communist Party and its members. It was a necessity to rid his party of doubters of him. First Kirov was assassinated in Leningrad on December 1st. Stalin had arranged the murder of Kirov fearing him as a potential rival. A few years later, in 1936, show trials of leading Communists, Zinoviev and Kamenev were held. The two men were “paraded in court to repeat fabricated confessions, sentenced to death and shot” (Hingley). A year later Stalin had Marshal Mikhail Tukhachevsky at the time the most influential military personality, and other leading generals court-martialled on charges of treason and executed (Hingley). These show trials aided Stalin in expanding the existing terror throughout the Soviet Communist Party, the elite and the country as a whole.
When Stalin first took over leadership the Soviet Union was far behind the West and the economy would have to be modernized rapidly in order to be competitive in the world. He came up with a 5 Year Plan. This plan gave the people of the Soviet Union a hope for a promising future. All industry and services were nationalised, managers were given unrealistic quotas by central planners and trade unions were converted into propaganda mechanisms for increasing productivity. It also called for transforming Soviet agriculture from mainly individual farms into a system of State collective farms. Stalin believed that the collectivisation of farms would improve agricultural productivity and would result in grain surpluses that would be large enough to feed a growing labour force and used to pay for industrialisation. To Stalin’s benefit, the 5 Year Plan was successful in only 4 years. This accomplished two things developing the “cult”. First, he proved that he was the right leader for the people of the Soviet Union and no one else could do a job as well as him. Secondly, he could develop another plan which would keep his followers under his control. Stalin confirmed this in his speech regarding the 5 Year Plan stating, “It would be a mistake to think that since these successes have been attained everything is as it should be. Of course, not everything with us is yet as it should be. There are plenty of shortcomings and mistakes in our work. Inefficiency and confusion are still to be met with in our practical work” (Stalin 629).
Stalin’s emphasis on industrial development was the main goal of the Second Five Year plan. Increasing coal, iron and steel output was the top concern. But there was also an emphasis on the development of communication systems such as railways and new industries such as the chemical industry . The third Five year Plan was from 1938 – 1941 when the war interrupted it. This plan saw an emphasis on weapon production and heavy industry.
There were many achievements during the period of the Five Year Plans. Unemployment was almost non-existent during industrialisation. Education became free and compulsory and there were many more doctors in Russia. Overall, gross industrial production more than doubled (global security).
For all the apparent success of the Five Year Plans, there were serious failings. Production figures were often exaggerated to make it look as if targets had been met. Some of the goods were unusable because they had been turned out so quickly by unskilled workers. The workers often worked in terrible conditions and their quality of life was poor – some even died in the freezing conditions. There were many industrial accidents and deaths due to industrialisation. However, Stalin was able to downplay the damaging information and only publicize the positive.
The cult of personality played an important role in increasing Stalin’s popularity. It influenced all areas of Soviet society and ultimately ushered in feelings of unity, and clarity during a period of instability and rapid change. Even though his reign was primarily related to terror, horror and slaughter, it also helped the Soviet Union gradually get out of the crisis it had suffered from previous wars. A large amount of the population, specifically intellectuals, experienced party members, and workers were quite aware of the absurdities of the “Cult”. However, even amongst those who disliked Stalin, he was still admired and respected. Although Stalin’s methods were harsh, he was a great leader and made many accomplishments. Even today that feeling still exists among Russia. A state contest was held in Russia a few years ago to name the greatest Russian in history and Joseph Stalin placed 3rd, despite the gulags, famines and purges that killed millions (Montange).
Bibliography
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Montagne, Renee. “Josef Stalin Named Among Great Russians.” Morning Edition (NPR) n.d. Canadian Reference Centre. EBSCO. Web. 22 Feb 2011.
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Rappaport, Helen. “Joseph Stalin: A Biographical Companion.” 1999 ABC CLIO Inc California. Web. 4 Mar 2011
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