Development of the Stalin Cult Flashcards
what year was Stalin’s 50th birthday which ignited the cult of personality?
December 1929
What were produced to glorify Stalin’s rule as the ‘mighty leader’ and ‘father of the nation’? (4)
Paintings, poems, posters and sculptures
Between what years was the Stalin cult fully stablished?
1933-1939
Until when did the Stalin cult really reach its height?
after the Second World War
What was published as the main historical textbook for all educational institutions in 1938?
the History of the All-Union Communist Party
or ‘short course’
What year was the History of the All-Union Communist Party or ‘short course’ published for all educational institutions?
in 1938
In the ‘History of All-Union Communist Party’ or “short course” 1938 which was published for all educational institutions, what was Stalin said to have had a major role in?
in the October/November revolution and subsequent Civil War
How was Trotsky and old Bolsheviks portrayed as in the History of the All Union Communist Party or ‘short course’ which was published in 1938 for all educational institutions?
as enemies of the people and assigned minor roles
How did Stalin manipulate photos to show him as the favoured man to succeeded Lenin?
they doctored photos to remove Stalin’s enemies
How many copies did the History of the All Union Communist Party or ‘short course’ made by 1948?
34 million copies
What did the adulation Stalin received show, even though it was manufactured?
it reflected the sale and strength of support that he acquired within the Soviet Union
What did the real sense of emotional attachment to Stalin reflect?
this reflected the tradition of loyalty to the leader just as the peasantry had once shown unwavering loyalty to their Tsar
What did peasants and workers create in their own homes which is similar to how some may worship saints in tsarist times?
they would have their own red corner of the great leaders
In 1956 who succeeded Stalin?
Nikita Khrushchev
What did Nikita Khrushchev say happened when Stalin read a pre-publication version of the official Short Biography of his own life?
he insisted that it be revised to praise his qualities and achievements even more
Although a traditionalist, what did Lenin encourage in the 1920’s?
the freedom of expression
What was the circumstances under which Lenin encouraged the freedom of expression in the 1920’s?
provided that art was not used to express counter-revolutionary sentiments
What happened to the creativity of the 1920’s under Stalin?
it gave way to conformity in the 1930’s
from what year did all writers have to belong to the “Union of Soviet Writers” and all artists to the “Union of Artists”?
1932
What did the various Unions of Soviet writers, artists and fill makers etc exert control over?
over what was created and who was allowed to create
What was individual expression deemed as?
politically suspect
What did the new norms demand of the Unions of music, artistry and writing ?
they demanded adherence to the doctrine of ‘socialist realism’
What did the new norms which demanded adherence to the doctrine of ‘socialist realism’ mean for the Union of music, artists and writing?
that they were not allowed to represent Soviet life exactly as it was as the time, but what it might become in the future
What did citizens learn as a result from the new norms imposed upon literature?
they learnt that the ‘march for Communism’ was inevitable
What was the role of Zhdanov?
it was to direct cultural policy
What were works of literature expected to glorify?
the working man
What was a popular novel with a message of happy endings?
How the Steel was Tempered
What type of culture was promoted?
folk culture
museums of what were set up to praise the arts and crafts of peasants?
museums of folklore
What were mosaic designs, marble patterned floors and stained glass windows designed to inspire?
to inspire pride and reverence
What was the grandest design of all but was never completed?
a ‘Palace of the Soviets’, intended to be the tallest building in the world and topped with a gigantic statute of Lenin
pictures of what reinforced the socialist message of Stalin’s collectivisation and industrial policies?
pictures of happy, productive workers
How was economic change romanticised by propaganda?
to emphasise the glories of the new socialist society in which all workers dreams were coming true
How was Stalin;s state the first attempt to create a new type of humanity?
through transmitting social and political values in the hope of affecting people’s thinking, emotions and behaviour
What became a propagandist theme?
the ‘worker hero’
Where did young men who accomplished heroic endeavours appear on the front of more often than Stalin from 1937-1938?
on the front of the Pravda
In what 2 years did young men who had accomplished heroic endeavours appear on the front of the Pravda more often than Stalin himself?
1937-1938
What % of female factory workers were described as ‘norm breaking’?
25%
As well as ‘norm breaking’ how else were women glorified?
those who had large families as ‘mother heroines’
What did Vera Mukina produced for the World Trade Fair in 1937?
a massive stainless steel sculpture of two figures with a sickle and a hammer raised over their heads in workers solidarity
What were 2 sections in the Pravda newspaper which highlighted Soviet success?
there were 2 sections, a ‘With us’ which presented stories of new factories and ‘With them’ which exposed the hardships in the West
Why were cheap books produced in bulk?
in order to help an increasingly literate pop;nation lap up propaganda stories of other citizens
What was produced for the illiterate portion of the population? (3)
wall posters and films and radios
not only was Stalin glorified as a person, but his pronouncements and policies were regarded as what?
godlike
What would happen to intellectuals and artists who did not conform to ‘socialist realism/?
they were banned from working and could be imprisoned, exiled or disposed
