“The aims and policies of single-party state rarely follow

their declared ideology” To what extent do you agree with

this assertion [in relation to the Stalin’s USSR]?

Introduction
 Stalin was influenced by Marxist ideologies at a young age (17), which motivated him to join the
communist movement.
 “We vow to thee comrade Lenin that we will honourably fulfill this, thy commandment” – at
Lenin’s funeral, establishes himself as Lenin’s disciple carrying out Lenin’s Legacy – original
declared ideology of Leninism-Marxism “(Bolshevism), ideology of Stalin referred to as Stalinism
 Opportune socialist - Joseph Stalin was not a theorist, but he was a consummate politician.
 Stalin's goal was to bring Russia up to par with the standards of the western world.
 The ideological drive for his policies were subordinate to pragmatic and political motives and
therefore he mended and changed declared ideology to meet those goals while remaining in
power
 Because of this shifting of policies, Stalinism came to represent a hopscotch of ideologies, which
makes its clear definition difficult

Continuity
 Many different aspects of continuity and discontinuity between the regimes of Stalin and Lenin
are proposed
 Totalitarian historians such as Richard Pipes tend to see Stalinism as the natural consequence of
Leninism, that Stalin "faithfully implemented Lenin's domestic and foreign policy programs"
Other Western historians, such as Robert Service, who notes that "institutionally and
ideologically, Lenin laid the foundations for a Stalin... but the passage from Leninism to the
worse terrors of Stalinism was not smooth and inevitable.”
 Opponents of this view include revisionist historians including Roy Medvedev, who argues that
although "one could list the various measures carried out by Stalin that were actually a
continuation of anti-democratic trends and measures implemented under Lenin... in so many
ways, Stalin acted, not in line with Lenin's clear instructions, but in defiance of them".
 A similar analysis is present in more recent works, such as those of Graeme Gill, who argues that
"[Stalinism was] not a natural flow-on of earlier developments; [it formed a] sharp break
resulting from conscious decisions by leading political actors.”
 Others argue that Stalin’s rule is mirroring that of the old Tsar. He was a dictator who oppressed
the people whose main goal was to stay in power. Stalin favoured and admired Ivan the Terrible
and Peter the Great and often emulated part of their policies.

Socialism in One Country

 Constitution of 1936, Stalin proclaimed: “Never before - no, really never - has the world ever
seen elections so completely free, and so truly democratic! History has recorded no other
example of the kind." This called for: democratic elections and fundamental human rights.
 However, only one party to vote for, and all the rights violated during Great Terror 
Constitution was an international propaganda technique
 Towards the end of 1924, Stalin put forward a constitution in which he proposed “socialism in
once country,” outlining his fundamental ideology. Although, from Marxist theory, socialism
(eventually communism) must prevail throughout the entire world.
 Stalin quickly parted into the Right camp of the Communist Party. The Left of the party, where
Stalin’s archenemy Leon Trotsky ideologically lay, believed that future Communist revolutions
were a “precondition for building a completely socialist society in Russia.” Stalin had believed
that national modernization, not international revolution, was the primary objective of the
Soviet Communist Party. Trotsky thought that the Old Bolsheviks were internationalists, and he
began criticizing Stalin for having a dangerous sense of national chauvinism in Russia.
 Trotsky’ position seems to be most precise to Marxism. In the Principles of Communism,
Friedrich Engels proclaims “the communist revolution will not merely be a national
phenomenon but must take place simultaneously in all civilized countries – that is to say, at least
in England, America, France, and Germany. It will develop in each of these countries more or
less rapidly”
 This is juxtaposed with his policies after the war where he attempted to spread communism
throughout the Eastern Bloc – however this was done in order to establish buffer zone and
secure safety of USSR during Cold War; not done for Marxist reasons – further proof that he
changes declared ideology in order to carry out his policies.

Collectivisation and Dekulakisation

 Stalin had believed that expropriating the land of the peasants must be done so by a use of
coercion from the state itself. Marx says “The proletariat will use its political supremacy…to
centralize all instruments of production in the hands of the State…and to increase the total of
productive forces rapidly.”
 At first glance, it would seem that what Stalin actually did was exactly what Marx was preaching;
that is, taking away private property which the NEP had given them and to centralize the
production in the hands of the state.
 Conversely, Marx set the pre-requisite for this change to occur, which included the proletariat
already in the position of the ruling class. Marx says “…the first step in the revolution by the
working class, is to raise the proletariat to the position of the ruling class, to win the battle for
democracy.” Hence, it follows that Stalin had taken what Marx had said in the Communist
Manifesto completely out of context; proof again that Stalin exploited the words and philosophy
of Karl Marx.
 Stalin wanted to “proleteriase” the peasants, placing them into “socialist agrotowns” where
they would be no different than their industrial brothers. However, whilst Lenin tried to reason
with the peasants, Stalin used force, terror and propaganda in order to implement
collectivisation. Result – peasants revolted.
 From this Marxist perspective, the mass collectivization of farms came entirely too early. Lenin
had envisioned a state which was much more advanced in its technological output capacity and
a state that had transpired culturally through a theoretical “cultural revolution” of socialism.
 “I am an old Bolshevik. I worked in the underground against the Tsar and then fought in the civil
war. Did I do all that in order that I should now surround villages with machine guns and order
my men to fire indiscriminately into the crowd of peasants? Oh, no, no!” – OPGU officer. This is
 not the Communist Russia, the Old Bolsheviks (including Lenin) had envisioned. *Continuity of
Old Tsar seen through Stalin’s regime
 Following the policies of dekulakisation – where approx. 10 million (exact figures debated)
‘kulaks’ were deported or shot – attempted to eliminate the bourgeois class. Yet, Robert
Conquest, a cold warrior, suggests that Stalin was attempting to break nationalism of Ukraine.
This is valid to an extent, since Stalin used the idea of an “ideological kulak” to further rid
himself of threats to his regime.
 However, can’t deny that in the end, accumulated grain needed to carry out industrialization
and also “broke” the peasantry into submission, furthering the USSR’s path towards
Communism.

First Five Year Plans

 In 1928 at the 15th Party Congress, Stalin abolished the capitalistic NEP and applied policy which
mirrored the features of War Communism and the command economy
 The 5 year plans demonstrate how Stalin felt the need to use industrialisation as a tool for
constructing a communist country.This plan essentially sped up the industrialization and
development of heavy industry.
 Yet, the prevailing justifications given by Stalin were to help the Soviet Union become self-
sufficient; to help the Soviet Union to become adequately prepared to defend itself; and to help
the Soviet Union straighten out its own backwardness.
 The drive and rationalization for heavy industrialization could only silence the dissenting and
opposing masses if Stalin instilled fear within the Russian people. This fear was based on Stalin’s
fabricated theory of a looming global war, for which the Soviet Union must be prepared at all
times to protect its people. Marx was against the psychological manipulative part in which Stalin
placed over the people. Marx pictured a state where there would be absent a ruler who seeks
prey upon the masses only to place them under his control.
 The Great Turn attempted to change way of thinking – creation of New Soviet Man.
 Egalitarianism in wages abolished in 1932 – Stakhanovite movement. Stalin believed that wage
differentials and bonuses necessary, rejecting Marxist’s principle of “from each according to his
ability, to each according to his needs”
 In 1935, Stalin proclaimed “Life has improved, comrades. Life has become more joyous” however
consumer goods did not do well, standards of living abysmal – Marxism called for improvement
of proletariat conditions.

Authoritarian Government (Purges)

 His obsessive focus on unity within a single party could be described as another ideology, which
was followed through with the purges. Perhaps the usage of terror and force could be viewed as
part of Leninism’s view on democratic centralism.
 It is argued whether the policies were pragmatic or ideological. It could be interpreted that he
attempted to purge “counter-revolutionaries” and anti-communists. Alternatively, purges
further consolidated his power by purging his enemies.
 To determine this, one must examine the validity of the claims that Stalin charged his opponents
with – very difficult to determine without released records. Most likely Bukharin, Kamenev,
Zinoviev and Rykov were not anti-communists since they have supported the Lenin from the
beginning – Old School Bolsheviks.
  Much corruption within the party such as the overzealousness of NKVD. This parallels the
careerism prevalent through the party at earlier stages – hierarchy evident in the party
contradicts the fundamental tenet of Marxism of equality.
 Marxist believed that the State would decline as socialism developed yet Stalin believed that the
State had to become stronger in order to cope with the many challenges faced by socialism.
Gone was the idea that one day the Soviet Union would be democratically governed by an
elected collective leadership.
 His cult of personalities also contradicts the idea of equality set forth by Marxism, “Every
Bolshevik, every worker, every citizen of our Soviet land is clearly aware that is we had been able
to route all these fascist agents, all these contemptible Trotskyists, Bukranists and bourgeois
nationalists, we are indebted to our great leader, our great and glorious Stalin.” – Krushchev
1939. It is evident that Stalin saw the “dictatorship of the proletariat” the most important stage
– and perhaps the only one

Social Policies
 Initially Stalin put a ban on the Russian Orthodox churches practices, (religion was ‘opium’ to the
people from a Marxist perspective), he switched his diplomacy towards the church in 1943,
when he sensed a need for nationalism and a better sense of community within the USSR to
continue the battle against Germany.
 The Communist government spent much effort in providing free education for its people. In
1931, compulsory primary education was provided for all children from eight to eleven. After
1934, besides the building of primary and secondary schools, higher education was also
provided to growing number of youngsters. Accompanying the growth of education was the
printing of a large number of cheap books and the building of libraries.
 The official policy of sex equality was being preached. Women became engineers, doctors and
teachers. This raised the status of women.
 The social welfare services also expanded. The government provided financial aid for working
mothers and their infants. It also provided free medical care and hospitalization for most of the
citizens.

Historiography
 “Many whose allegiance went to the Soviet Union may well be seen as traitors to their countries,
and to the democratic culture. But their profounder fault was more basic still. Seeing themselves
as independent brains, making their choices as thinking beings, they ignored their own criteria.
They did not examine the multifarious evidence, already available in the 1930s, on the realities
of the Communist regimes. That is to say, they were traitors to the human mind, to thought
itself” – Robert Conquest
 In the Cold War-era United States, Stalinism took on a decidedly more negative meaning, akin to
what the New York Times dubbed "red fascism."
 Trotskyites argue that the "Stalinist USSR" was not socialist but a bureaucratized degenerated
workers' state — that is, a non-capitalist state in which exploitation is controlled by a ruling
caste which accrued benefits and privileges at the expense of the working class.
 Most Marxists state that Stalinism is not a form of Marxism: it includes an extensive use of
propaganda to establish a personality cult around an absolute dictator, as well as extensive use
of the secret police to maintain social submission and silence political dissent.
Conclusion
 Perhaps his ideologies can also be defined as a ‘grey blur,’ in the sense that they were never
black or white, left wing or right wing – always changed based on conditions necessary for Stalin
to remain in power
 Marx believed in no one man attaining absolute political power of the state, that which Stalin
was attempting to achieve
 Stalin warped Marxist philosophy in many ways which proved detriment to the existence of the
Soviet state. His lust for power and his idealized image of himself made Stalin believe that he
was above the proletariat revolutionary state, and this played out in his authoritarian tactics of
deceit and ruthlessness.
 In the end, Stalin took no part in true Marxist teaching, and for that the Soviet Union began its
path toward authoritarianism and repression for the people under Stalin. Stalin’s Marxism was
anything but true Marxism and for that, the people suffered.
 “Stalin was a man with definite Marxist-Leninist convictions, and he justified his dictatorship on
the grounds that it was necessary. Yet that was not the only thing that drove him. His
personality itself seems to have been characterized by constant and radical mistrust.... his
policies carried the imprint of this” – Philip Boobbyer