...Deadrick Evans Professor Seal March 15, 2012 Life of Joseph Stalin Stalin was a great a man and on his way in life to some prosperous achievements. The man who turned the Soviet Union from a backward country into a world superpower at unimaginable human cost Stalin was born into a dysfunctional family in a poor village in Georgia. Permanently scarred from a childhood bout with smallpox and having a mildly deformed arm, Stalin always felt unfairly treated by life, and thus developed a strong, romanticized desire for greatness and respect, combined with a shrewd streak of calculating cold-hardheartedness towards those who had maligned him. He always felt a sense of inferiority before educated intellectuals, and particularly distrusted them. Joseph Stalin's creation and rule of the Soviet Union, from 1922 until his death in 1953. Joseph Stalin early years in life, Joseph Stalin was born in Gori Georgia, a Russian Empire on December 18, 1879. Joseph Stalin real name was Joseph Vissarionvich Djvugashvili, but he changed it to Stalin which means (Man of Steel). His family was very poor. His mother was a washerwoman, domestic servant at the rich people houses, and his father was a cobbler. Joseph Stalin resented his father, because he uses to beat Joseph when he came home from work drunk. On the other hand Joseph loved his mother, because when he was in pain she would confront him. Joseph got sick when he was a young boy he came down with smallpox, and his family was really poor...
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...birth: Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili Ruthless and ambitious, Joseph Stalin grabbed control of the Soviet Union after the death of V.I. Lenin in 1924. As a member of the Bolshevik party, Joseph Stalin (his adopted name, meaning "Man of Steel") had an active role in Russia's October Revolution in 1917. He maneuvered his way up the communist party hierarchy, and in 1922 was named General Secretary of the Central Committee. By the end of the 1920s, Joseph Stalin had expelled his rival Leon Trotsky, consolidated power, and was the de facto dictator of the Soviet Union. In the 1930s Stalin executed his political enemies and started aggressive industrial and agricultural programs that were supposed to lead to miraculous improvements in production, but instead left untold thousands of peasants dead. During World War II, Joseph Stalin was the commander of the Soviet military, first making a non-aggression pact with Adolf Hitler (1939) and then joining the Allies after Germany invaded Russia in 1941. Stalin attended the postwar conferences at Yalta, Teheran and Potsdam that determined the shape of the postwar world. He endured as maximum leader until his death in 1953; years later he was denounced by his successor, Nikita Khrushchev, and "Stalinism" was officially condemned. Brief Bio Joseph Stalin (1878-1953) was the dictator of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) from 1929 to 1953. Under Stalin, the Soviet Union was transformed from a peasant society into an industrial...
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...athan Ferro Fulton High School Joseph Stalin had a harsh early life. Joseph Stalin was born Josef Vissarionovich Djugashvili on December 18, 1878, or December 6, 1878, according to the Old Style Julian calendar. He was born in small town of Gori, Georgia, and then part of the Russian empire. When Joseph was born, he was born into poverty and he then became involved in revolutionary politics, as well as criminal activities, as a young man. Stalin’s father was a shoemaker and beat Stalin all the time. Joseph also liked to keep his life personal and very private. “Stalin had no close friends; he was sullen, rude, and had other (unspecified) character traits that made many party comrades shun his company.” (Young, M. 2005) Joseph...
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...Was Joseph Stalin a hero or a heartless murderer? To some people, he was a hero, while to others he was a coldblooded slaughterer. Joseph’s time as dictator of the Soviet Union deeply impacted the whole world. By using force and installing fear into everyone around him, Joseph tried to achieve his goal to change the world. His time as dictator is now known as Stalin’s reign of terror. Joseph was born on December 18, 1878 in Gori, Georgia. Although he was born into a life of poverty, he never let that impede him. While attending school, Joseph was constantly bullied and treated inadequately. It did not help that Joseph had gotten smallpox as a child that left him with numerous scars on his face. When Joseph was 12, he was in a horse-drawn carriage accident. Consequently, one of his arms was considerably shorter than the other. Joseph was always really self-conscious of these flaws. Later in Joseph’s schooling, his mother wished him to become a priest. For a brief period, Joseph attended priest school, but he soon dropped out and never became a priest. Joseph did not return to school and instead began working....
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...Mr. Stalin, a notorious Russian dictator, lived 74 years as one of the most despicable men on the planet. From a life bound for priesthood to protesting with the Bolsheviks, Joseph Stalin, born on December 18, 1878 as Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhagashvili, was always a rebellious person. Joseph had a slightly troubled childhood. His parents, better known as Beso and Keke, often abused him. His father, Beso,had drunken rages and that was when most of the abusing took place. Unfortunately for young Joseph, his father left to go live in the city. Joseph attended Gori Church School. While attending, he developed smallpox. His favorite childhood game was krivi, a game that bears a resemblance to boxing. He was very good at the game, but he was often bullied because he was only 5 feet 4 inches tall. He was self-conscious about that. Also in his childhood, Stalin suffered an injury; that injury was a deformed left arm caused by getting run over by a cart....
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...seemed like trouble or possible competition was gotten rid of. One of them was Leon Trotsky who Stalin forced into exile. Stalin like many totalitarian leaders was very persuasive in order to keep people at bay. He exerted total control which he achieved mainly by forceful actions, intimidation and brainwashed youth and above all fear. Private life did not exist in the soviet union. Citizens mails were read by informers or secret police and telephone conversations were always monitored. A wrong word to the wrong person could cost you your family and your...
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...A man born Josef Vissarionvich Djugashivili, in Gori, Georgia, on December 18, 1878 would have a profound impact on the Soviet Union throughout his time as supreme leader (Brent, 2008, pg 8). Born the son of a Georgian shoemaker, he was always reading and studying hard which earned him a scholarship to the Theological seminary in Tbilisi, Georgia (Marrin, 1988, pg. 10). This man stood only five feet four inches tall and had a severely withered left arm which made his left hand nearly useless (Brent, 2008, pg. 19). While at the seminary, he became heavily involved in Marxist teachings. He led demonstrations and private meetings where he taught Marxist ideals inside the seminaries locked gates. In 1912, Josef Vissarionvich Djugashivili changed his name and became Joseph Stalin, Russia’s “Man of Steel” (Brent, 2008, pg. 72). Heavily influenced by his Marxist teachings and the mentorship of Lenin, he became the most revered and the most feared leader of the Soviet Union. Stalin became leader of the Soviet Union during hard economic times when their industries were fifty years behind other nations. Stalin implemented a series of five year plans to help bring the Soviet Union up to date with the rest of the World. Although is five year plans helped the Soviet Union industrialize quickly, they had a severe impact on his countries citizens. Stalin wanted to be the one and only leader of the Soviet Union and persecuted anyone who did not remain totally loyal to him or his philosophy...
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...“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely”-John Acton. I believe with too much power people begin to believe that they are better than other humans. Power is a tool used to make choices. But, it doesn't always corrupt someone. Although, power increases the chance of corruption. A great example of a man with too much power is Kim Jong-Il, the dictator of North Korea who was in power from 1994 to 2011. Kim Jong-Il has done many bad things with his power, such as putting thousands of people including children in imprisoned labor camps. They were appointed to imprison labor camps due to the acts he considered to be a crime which was hoarding food, and being an anti-socialist. Inside of the imprisonment labor camps the imprisoned...
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...experience loss, so the strong takes from others, even if it is to not gain more but lose less Adolf Hitler in the past had gained an influential position in Germany, and he rose to that position because everyone else decided to follow him. He has all his power and influence because he had left behind the morals that hold back power. He did terrible things to the Jewish and yet no one thought that he was wrong because they had also left behind part of their morality. He convinced them that the reason Germany lost the war because of the existence of the Jews. They believed him; as the country that had lost so much in the first world war they could not bear to lose anything else. Through the regret of feeling powerless they followed the man who could leave behind the morals that should have bound his actions. With his power, he made Germans feel invincible and superior to the rest. That’s why...
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...totalitarianism in Russia came with the loss of nationalism after losing both the Russo-Japanese war and World War One. The Russian Government began their climb to a totalitarian state with the loss of the Russo-Japanese war. Japan clean swept Russia despite the fact that Russia's army was far grander. Despite this, they were not prepared to fight off Japan and their more technological advanced surprise attacks. Not even ten years later, World War One broke out but with the internal power struggles mixed with the loss of nationalism caused Russia to pull out of the war. Hatred of the existing powers, a high tax rate, a Russian revolution beforehand and lost a sense of nationalism lead way for a man that promised he could change Russia for the better. Joseph Stalin a so-called “man of steel”. He modernized Russian into the Soviet Union, using agriculture and factory jobs. This helped the Soviet Union avoid the worldwide depression hitting countries are the world hard. During this, he established himself as a leader but more importantly he established his political enemies. He was most known for having his political enemies disappear from the public eye by unjust techniques. He justified hate to modernize Russia into an industrial modern fascist state. As for Italy, they lost an entire generation of men to war that didn’t benefit them. Benito Mussolini was a fascist dictator that came to power after World War One with the help of the old government. He came to power after King Victor...
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...Qualities of a Strong Leader: Resourcefulness as the Basis Leadership Strength Strong leaders are consistently present in flourishing nations. Japan, for example, is one of the richest and most powerful countries in the world despite a lack of many natural assets. Africa, on the other hand, is the world’s poorest and most underdeveloped continent in the world despite overwhelming amounts of minerals, rich soil, forests, and several other natural resources. Struggling nations in the world, such as many African nations, are often plagued with a great deal of political turmoil and frequently lack the kind of leadership that exists in thriving states like Japan. A nation’s downfall or rise to power is due to a ruling body’s decision-making rather than resource availability, domestic lifestyles, or even luck. World leaders, as result, are under constant scrutiny from average citizens to pundits. Critics evaluating a leader’s strength do not think that strong leaders are people who simply have a lot of state power; an autocrat is not necessarily “strong.” Effective, strong leaders are considered “strong” because of their resourcefulness. Turmoil is inevitable, and a leader must be prepared for the worst. If French and American colonial leaders were unprepared to respond to the oppression they felt respectively from the French and British monarchies, neither the United States nor the French Republic, two very powerful states, would have ever been formed. Similarly, the decline of...
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...this up because if they were caught they would have violated the Biological Weapons Convention which they had signed in 1972. They eventually admitted to the atrocity they had committed. “It wasn't until thirteen years later - 1992- that President Boris Yeltsin admitted, without going into details, that the anthrax outbreak was the result of military activity at the facility.” (pbs.org). Victor Frankenstein had discovered the dangers of knowledge, but unfortunately he became aware of this due to personal experience. He made a friend towards the end of his quest to attempt to redeem himself for traveling to far along his path for the gain of knowledge. Victor learns that his new found friend is delving in the same quest he had, “Unhappy man! Do you share my madness? Have you drunk also of the intoxication draught?” and decides to tell Walter his tale that led him up to the current moment. (Mary Shelley 12) . Human beings have always had to regulate themselves and each other so that they wouldn’t commit such atrocities as to destroy each other. People are losing their grip on these regulators, their morals and ethics. Science has been turned into a weapon rather than a tool, murder has become accepted and an adopted trend of society, and men with no morals have become leaders of countries, and all of them have reaped destruction from the world. “Abortion: a medical procedure used to end a pregnancy and cause the death of the fetus,” (Merriam-Webster). There was a time where parents...
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...The decisions in World War I (WW1), or the Great War, were mostly the reasons for the start of World War II (WW2). In 1902, a man named Benito Mussolini moved to Switzerland from Italy to avoid going to jail. He was an avid socialist news reporter. While earning a reputation as a political journalist and public speaker, he produced propaganda for a trade union, proposing a strike and advocating violence as a means of enforcing demands. (Hibbert, Foot. Jan 12, 2000). He had got into a lot of trouble with the Switzerland police due to his writing. Mussolini had been arrested and sent back to Italy, then being set free moved back to Switzerland. He got arrested again and was drafted into the military and completed his time. Once out of the...
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...Mao’s approach to political leadership as a revolutionary was summed up in the phrase, “Correct leadership must come from the masses and go to the masses.” What was Mao’s philosophy of how to lead a revolution, before and after 1949? Initially a radical revolutionary then a committed Marxist, Mao’s philosophy on how to lead a revolution was bathed in Nationalism. It is Mao’s love for China’s independence coupled with agrarian reforms that put Mao on the road to power. After 1949, Nationalism would reappear in Mao’s cultural policies, his relationship with Moscow and underdeveloped countries. Mao feared nothing and no one. Using Marxism-Leninism as a framework, Mao proposed the use of peasants to create his revolutionary elite. His innovative thinking was unpopular among many of Mao’s Communist comrades; they believed the proletariat to be the key group (Cheek, 11). Mao also championed women’s liberation from masculine authority of husbands as well as clan, temple, and general religious oppression (Cheek, 11) also unacceptable position for a Communist to take. Mao’s breakdown of the rural classes into poor, middle and rich peasants demonstrated the Nationalist impulse rooted in his personality. His attachment to China led him to cooperate with the Guomindang, a nationalist group (Cheek, 10) and in the resistance war against Japan guided Mao to power (Cheek, 13). After standing up to his abusive father Mao said, “…I learned that when I defend my rights by open rebellion...
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...HISTORY 4C: WESTERN CIVILIZATION: 1715-PRESENT Description of the Course: This course surveys the history of Europe from the beginning of the 18th century until the end of the 20th century. We will study major political, economic, social and intellectual developments that affected European societies during that time period and changed lives of people throughout the world. Major themes of the course will include the French and Industrial Revolutions, emergence of ideologies such as liberalism, nationalism and socialism as well as their practical impact on politics and culture, the rise and fall of European global dominance, wars and revolution of the 20th century. Goals of the Course: I. Understanding Historical Heritage of our Civilization: The major purpose of this course is to familiarize you with heritage of the western civilization and help you understand significance of its impact on contemporary world. This class will aim to illustrate how the past impacts people’s lives in the present and how our actions, ideas, and self-image are shaped by historical developments. II. Acquiring Critical Thinking: History consists of more than just memorization of names, dates and narratives of historical events. Although knowledge of factual information is imperative, it is important to realize that history is interpretation of facts, trends and ideas. Therefore, neither professor nor Teaching Assistants will give you “right” or “wrong” answers. Instead, another major...
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