Vassar on a full scholarship, did postgraduate work at Columbia University, and had a graduate fellowship at University of Florence. Despite being a seemingly normal American young woman, she was intrigued by Communism and ultimately joined the Soviet Union as a spy. Elizabeth Bentley has an intriguing story, examined in great detail by both Kathryn Olmstead and Lauren Kessler in Red Spy Queen: A Biography of Elizabeth Bentley and Clever Girl: Elizabeth Bentley, the Spy Who Ushered in The McCarthy
barriers fell, as well. The period after the Bolsheviks rose to power was a time of many changes for all Russians, but none were more affected than the women of the time. Lenin, the leader of the Bolshevik party (later called the Communists) was greatly disturbed by the domestic enslavement of Soviet women, and almost immediately granted political equality for females throughout the nation. With this newfound freedom, women were presented with many new opportunities in all aspects of life, and many challenges
Consolidation of power to 1924? Lenin 's leadership was a crucial factor in consolidating Bolshevik power up until his death in 1924. His pragmatic leadership helped gain some initial support as well as giving him unquestioned authority within the party. Furthermore, his push for the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk to help save the revolution from foreign invasion was crucial and his practicality was further exemplified through War Communism and the introduction of the New Economic Policy (NEP)
described by this ancient idea of human nature. Joseph Stalin was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union’s Central Committee from 1922 until his death in 1953. Under Stalin’s leadership, the Ukraine suffered from a famine so great that it was considered by many to be an act of genocide by Stalin’s government. During the time of the famine, Stalin also ordered purges within the Soviet Union of any person to be an enemy of the state. It is estimated the total number of deaths during
The Disconnection inside Socialism The obvious benefits of communism are shadowed by the dark truth that the ruling party and their agenda will effectively alienate the common people in order to protect the state. As history has shown, socialism on a large scale has evolved from theory to tyrannical regimes that embody the same principals of sustaining a dictatorship. “Omon Ra” by Victor Pelevin, published in 1992 by the Tekst Publishing House in Moscow, gives great insight into the structure of
interest due to its scathing commentary on the Russian communist movement at a time when Britain and Russia were still allies. The body of criticism relating to the novel is among the greatest of twentieth century literature. Attacking the work from a variety of angles, every detail has been poked and prodded, but the consensus is still out on how best to judge Orwell's book. By analyzing the usage of simple themes, comparisons to the Russian communist movement, and the usage of animal allegory in George
Liberal democracy in Europe fell apart during WWI , and just as it did there the same could have happened in California. Along with the Great Depression, and the devastation it was causing, the communist saw an opportunity, and took it. The fear that became part of communism overshadowed the benefits, as well as the threat against American values, such as the free market, and maximum profits. Laws were created to deter people from striking, such
Andrei Romanovich Chikatilo seemed to be just like a regular man. He had a wife, two kids, was a teacher in Russian literature, an engineer, and a proud soviet party member. No one would have ever guessed he was one of the world’s most notorious serial killers. By day, he was your average Joe literature teacher, but by night he took upon a darker passion that involved rape and murder. He would lure his victims into decollate locations with sadistic intent unknown to them. Chikatilo managed see out
Comparison of Lenin and Trotsky’s Responses to the Pogroms The continuation of the violent anti-Jewish riots that had plagued the Russian Empire in post-Revolutionary Russia forced the response of prominent communist party leaders. Both Vladimir Lenin, leader of the Bolshevik party and head of the Soviet state, and Leon Trotsky, leader of the Bolshevik army, formulated responses that attempted to promote the ideas of communism through condemnation of the attacks. However, the content of these responses
Joseph Stalin’s rise to General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during 1918-1928 was due largely due to his cunning manipulation. The timing of other events that catapulted him into power was a significant event in the life of the Soviet Union, although less significant were still a factor in his rise. Joseph Stalin was a man who could easily manipulate those surrounding him, specifically those with a great deal of power. THis manipulation was exercised throughout his rise, namingly
Sino-Soviet relations Following the Second World War a new political order existed. The world essentially was divided between two dominant and opposed spheres, that of the United States and that under the hegemony of the Soviet Union. This global order heavily influenced the foreign policy decisions of policy makers in both Washington and Moscow. Joseph Stalin, the General Secretary of the Communist party and the absolute dictator of the Soviet Union, sought national security for the Soviet Union
Yes the Communist did pose a threat to nationalist. The restored tolerance for American communism that grew out of the wartime alliance with the Soviet Union did not long survive the victory over Hitler in the spring of 1945. Though there was an ostensible revival of the Popular Front collaboration between Communists and liberals during the war, it was a temporary and essentially superficial phenomenon. The party's patriotism did little to overcome the hostility of its traditional enemies or make
in the Soviet Union and Why it Failed Communism is defined as "a system of political and economic organization in which property is owned by the community and all citizens share in the enjoyment of the common wealth, more or less according to their need." In 1917 the rise of power in the Marxist-inspired Bolsheviks in Russia along with the consolidation of power by Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin, the word communism came to mean a totalitarian system controlled by a single political party. This
How did the "revolutionary-imperial paradigm" shape Soviet foreign policy during the early Cold War? The defeat of Germany and its satellites in the war radically changed the balance of forces in the world. The Soviet Union became one of the leading world powers, without which, should not have been resolved then no question of international life. And so, its features began to have impact on world relations and became clearer for foreign diplomats and observers. However, during the war U.S. power
tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union grew after one of the biggest wars ever fought, World War II, ended. The Cold War started in the mid 1940’s and ended around 1991. The war was fought by the two superpowers in the world, the United States and the Soviet Union. Although the two countries were never directly at war with one another, there were always tensions between them. Ending the Cold War was not in anyone’s agenda until the Soviet Union’s new leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, came
events throughout history the dissolution of the Soviet Union had many contributing forces. However, most historians agree that the main contributor was Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev and the many radical reforms he implemented during the six years he was the leader of the USSR. Even though the official dissolution took place in December 1991, the Soviet Union’s demise began to take form in the 1980s. In order to understand why the Soviet Union dissolved it is important to have a clear picture
1991, the youngest individual in decades to become head of the Soviet Communist Party dominated the history of the Soviet Union. Mikhail Gorbachev launched a program of political and economic reform that dramatically affected domestic life and the place of his country in world affairs. The Soviet dictatorship was transformed into a multiparty state in which the Communist Party had to struggle to maintain a role. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union moved toward a free-market economy. With equal drama, the longstanding
While China and the Soviet Union are regarded as successful manifestations of the communist model, they possess institutional inconsistencies and tensions which caused them to stray from Marxist ideology. Over time, the leaders of these nations adapted the Marxist ideology into unique political systems with varying degrees of deviance. Vladimir Lenin’s revolutionary take on communism permanently altered the global interpretation of the ideology, and today’s communism is a direct product of his vision
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia has undergone many changes. These changes were very profound and included the drastic restructuring of both the political structure and the economy. When the Russian people became dissatisfied with the communist system, they pushed for a regime change, which resulted in the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the introduction of a democratic system. Along with these political changes came the economic change from communism to a free market system. The
INTRODUCTION In 1939, the Communist USSR entered into a pact with Nazi Germany containing a secret protocol that divided the eastern part of Europe into German and Soviet interests. While the two signed a non-aggression treaty that should last for ten years, it was only to buy time to prepare their troops to attack the other. Joseph Stalin, the de facto leader of the Soviet Union, was consumed about reforming his army after losing most of his senior officers, who were either detained or executed