Chapter 15 - The development of the Stalin cult 1929-1941

Question 1

What cult of personality did Stalin promote in the 1920s?

Answer 1

The cult of Lenin, with Stalin as his ‘humble successor’

Question 2

When was the Stalin cult fully established?

Answer 2

After 1933

Question 3

When did the Stalin cult reach its height?

Answer 3

After WWII

Question 4

When did the Stalin cult grow noticeably?

Answer 4

After his 50th birthday celebrations in December 1929
Leading Party members wrote articles praising him in Pravda

Question 5

What was Stalin portrayed as?

Answer 5

AN INFALLIBLE LEADER
Described as ‘all-knowing’ and a ‘universal genius’

A SURE GUIDE
He knew how to lead the USSR forward despite dangers on all sides (‘the Great Helmsman’)

THE SUCCESSOR TO MARX, ENGELS AND LENIN
Giving the sense of a progression of great men who had brought socialist elightenment to the Soviet people

A FATHER FIGURE
Described as the ‘father of the nation’

A SEMI-RELIGIOUS LEADER
Symbolised by titles such as ‘the shining sun of humanity’

A TRUE BOLSHEVIK
Living simply with no extravagance

Question 6

What were the six components of the Stalinist cult?

Answer 6

1. Infallibility
2. Relationship to Lenin
3. Propaganda
4. Patronage
5. Tsarist symbolism
6. Falsification of history

Question 7

Infallibility

Answer 7

The cult portrayed Stalin as an ‘all-knowing’, infallible leader

Question 8

Relationship to Lenin

Answer 8

The cult portrayed him as the heir to Lenin, transferring features of the Lenin cult to Stalin

Question 9

Propaganda

Answer 9

Paintings, poems, posters, slogans and sculptures glorified Stalin, while written works were dedicated to him and prefaced with acknowledgements of his genius

Question 10

Patronage

Answer 10

Stalin’s inner circle were associated with the cult too, with cities and factories named after them

Question 11

Tsarist symbolism

Answer 11

The cult borrowed from the ‘little father’ image associated with the tsars (the belief that the tsar cared for all his people as he was like a father to them)

Question 12

Falsification of history

Answer 12

Stalin’s role in the pivotal events of Bolshevism was enlarged, while his rivals were downplayed, reimagined as enemies of the people, or excised from books and photos completely

Question 13

What was Stalin’s view on literature and the arts?

Answer 13

They were only valuable if they supported his view of socialist ideology

Question 14

Changes in 1932

Answer 14

• All writers had to belong to the Union of Soviet Writers
• All artists and art critics had to belong to the Union of Artists
• Similar unions for musicians, film-makers and sculptors

Question 15

Who laid down the frame of reference for writers?

Answer 15

Andrei Zhdanov in April 1934 at the first Congress of the Union of Soviet Writers

Question 16

What was the frame of reference for writers?

Answer 16

Socialist realist works were expected to glorify the workers, especially communities working together and embracing new technology. Works were expected to be uplifting and optimistic

Question 17

What did the unions dictate?

Answer 17

What sort of literature and art were allowed
Anyone not following the guidelines risked expulsion

Question 18

What was the consequence of being excluded from the unions?

Answer 18

No chance of their work being published, exhibited, performed or paid for

Question 19

What were socialist realist works expected to depict?

Answer 19

What Soviet life was moving towards in an ideal future
By depicting the ‘socialist reality’ of the future, people would want to strive towards it

Question 20

What was there a renewed interest in in the 1930s?

Answer 20

Russian works from the 19th century which were promoted to all the peoples of the USSR.
This was partly to allow Soviet proletarians access to what had been bourgeois culture under tsarism

Question 21

What other types of art were also celebrated?

Answer 21

Folk music and dance, and peasant arts and crafts
Stalin was committed to promoting ‘national’ values

Question 22

What was Soviet propaganda seen as?

Answer 22

A way of educating Soviet workers and peasants about the ‘truths’ of Stalinism and the importance of building socialism

Question 23

Who was Pavlik Morozov and why is he significant?

Answer 23

He was portrayed as a hero for denouncing his father to the NKVD for helping kulaks, and also for reporting that other peasants had been hoarding grain. He was then murdered by local kulaks

Soviet propaganda portrayed him as a martyr and his example was used to encourage young people to put the state first, even over their families

Question 24

Propaganda in early life

Answer 24

• Nurseries and schools full of messages about the glories of communism
• Pictures of Stalin and Lenin prominent
• Communist youth groups
• Textbooks and lessons glorified Soviet achievements

Question 25

What is an example of propaganda in education?

Answer 25

The use of History of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union: Short Course
- Edited by Stalin
- All students had to read it and use it in their work as the source of answers to all important questions
- Ambitious Party members learned it by heart

Question 26

What did the Stalinist campaigns depend on propaganda to create?

Answer 26

A buzz of enthusiasm, aspiration and national pride
e.g. the 5YP’s relied heavily on propaganda

Question 27

What did propaganda for workers mainly focus on?

Answer 27

Worker-heroes such as Stakhanov

Question 28

What did propaganda for workers aim to do?

Answer 28

Inspire workers to out-perform their targets

Question 29

What is an example of propaganda for workers?

Answer 29

Statues of workers and peasants were erected e.g. the 24.5m high ‘Worker and Kolkhoz Woman’ by Vera Mukhina produced for the World Trade Fair in Paris
Worker-heroes appeared in books, art and film

Question 30

What are some other ways propaganda was spread?

Answer 30

Posters and murals were widely displayed showing achievements of the Soviet state or warnings of the USSR’s enemies
Fictional films and newsreels gave a similar message

Question 31

How did the percentage of collectivised households change when enforced collectivisation was briefly relaxed in 1930?

Answer 31

It dropped from 50% to 20%

Question 32

What is an example of propaganda not working for collectivisation?

Answer 32

Despite a huge propaganda campaign, may peasants resisted the process by slaughtering their livestock

Question 33

What is an example of propaganda not working for workers?

Answer 33

The Communist Party archives contain many examples of letters from workers expressing their anger at:
- the lack of adequate housing
- there being nothing to buy in the shops
- the corruption
- favouritism and bribery they saw amongst their managers at work

Question 34

What is an example of propaganda not working for the 5YPs?

Answer 34

Jokes, graffiti and popular songs criticised the 5YPs
e.g. one song talked about ‘The Five Year Plan in Ten’ rather than the propaganda line of ‘The Five Year Plan in Four’