Soviet Ideology, Cultural Policy, and Propaganda
Marxism-Leninism ideology and its connection to Soviet cultural policies is a topic of frequent exploration, however this paper will take that common investigation a step further by considering the role of Soviet propaganda and its relationship to the shifting ideologies of the Soviet Union and its official cultural policies. The research will be carried out by identifying the nature of Soviet ideology as well as what it entails. Furthermore, Stalin-era Soviet cultural policy will be explored as it pertains to the aforementioned ideology as well as the contrary characteristics of socialist realism. After defining propaganda, the themes and characteristics of Soviet propaganda will then be analyzed in regards to Soviet ideology and cultural policy, as well as an interpretation of the political tool’s role will be made paying considerable attention to the unfixed notions of Soviet ideology. While the Soviet practice of propaganda may not coincide entirely with the notions of their ideology and the cultural policy, in practice, the propaganda was more relevant than the ideology and policy it served due to the fact that it clearly represented the ambitions and state-of-mind of the ruling Soviet Communist Party and can furthermore claim that the policies and ideology in fact operated for the propaganda apparatus. This paper will argue that Soviet propaganda apparatus became more important than the Soviet ideology itself.
Ideology of the Soviet Union: The power of ideas to shape or determine reality
Established in 1922, The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a specifically centralized single-party state governed by the Vladimir Lenin-founded Communist Party. Politically recognized a...
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...volution. The ruling Communist Party would then put the Marxism-Leninism ideology in motion through its ever-narrowing cultural policy as it attempted to put the Marxist ideas into practice with intent to create a new Soviet nation. One such method of achieving this nation was through the use of propaganda. However in the case of the Soviet Union, due to the fact that the ideology and policy's was inconsistent nature and was prone to changes, the propaganda apparatus within the Soviet Union took a much different role than historically traditional practices of propaganda. This role would see the ideology and cultural policy being used as the tool of the propaganda rather than vice-versa. Therefore the new relationship between soviet ideology and propaganda supports the claim that the practice of propaganda was in fact bigger than the ideology itself in Soviet Russia.
Both the superpowers have made use of the propaganda to fight the Cold War. Propaganda is information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause of point of view. Especially, the USSR or the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics efficiently manipulated the prop...
This was, of course, only a humorous exaggeration, a case of political satire. Yet beneath the humor, there lies a very profound testament to the belief that Russia's political culture has been inherited from its czarist days and manifested throughout its subsequent development. The traditions from the pre-Revolution and pre-1921 Russia, it seems, had left its brand on the 70-years of Communist rule. The Soviet communism system was at once a foreign import from Germany and a Russian creation: "on the one hand it is international and a world phenomenon; on the other hand it is national and Russian…it was Russian history which determined its limits and shaped its character." (Berdyaev, "Origin")
“The Sources of Soviet Conduct” Foreign Affairs, 1947, explains the difficulty of summarizing Soviet ideology. For more than 50 years, the Soviet concept held the Russian nations hypnotized, discontented, unhappy, and despondent confined to a very limited Czarist political order. Hence, the rebel support of a bloody Revolution, as a means to “social betterment” (Kennan, 567). Bolshevism was conceptualized as “ideological and moral, not geopolitical or strategic”. Hoover declares that… “five or six great social philosophies were struggling for ascendancy” (Leffler, The Specter of Communism, 20).
Words and images were silent weapons used by all governments involved during World War II. Wars are generally fought between soldiers, but the different ideologies often meet on the battlefield as well. The support of the people is crucial during these times since it general knowledge that strength relies on numbers. Propaganda targets people’s emotions and feelings and changes people’s perception about a particular idea, people or situation. Propaganda goes hand in hand with the art of persuasion and convincing; these tools can control and manipulate the collective minds of massive amount of its audience. During World War II, for instance, the elements of war were taken from the location of the military fights and brought to the households of millions of families. Advertising has the power to sell ideas, to give or take away hope, and to boosts people´s morale; the ideas that were presented to the public through propaganda are immortal, they linger in the nation’s memory. Images often displayed in posters and pamphlets during war time, were an essential factor to gain peoples support and trust, images attract people’s attention with more efficiency than word. It is an effective mean to attract attention; it I said that images speak louder than words and this case is not the exception. Media, during World War II, was the catalyst which increased the magnitude of the issue that was being confronted. This event left a mark in our history since its objective was to generate hatred between ethnics. It is in our nature, the human nature, to take our own culture as a point of reference to judge others, this is a phenomenon called ethnocentrism and it is fuelled bye prejudice and stereotyping. Throughout history whenever technologically...
Ideology is created by the double-movement of idealization and desire. The model, the idealized Capitalist figure for the self, creates its own ideological structure as a means to selfing, as an objectified desired on the official apparatus of the communication and creation of Capitalist ideology, the television screen:
A. Soviet History. Marxists.org. 2010. Web. The Web. The Web.
When most people hear the name Joseph Stalin, they usually associate the name with a man who was part of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and was responsible for the deaths of millions of people. He was willingly to do anything to improve the power of the Soviet Union’s economy and military, even if it meant executing tens of millions of innocent people (Frankforter, A. Daniel., and W. M. Spellman 655). In chapter three of Sheila Fitzpatrick’s book, Everyday Stalinism, she argues that since citizens believed the propaganda of “a radiant future” (67), they were able to be manipulated by the Party in the transformation of the Soviet Union. This allowed the Soviet government to expand its power, which ultimately was very disastrous for the people.
Cassier, M. (1999) The Shattered Horizon, How Ideology Mattered to Soviet Politics. Studies in European Thought, 51(1). 35-59.
In the most destructive war in the history, propaganda became a new way of attempt to influence in a huge manner a notable percent of public opinion by using media or any alternative via of communication. Somehow, in World War II the known term ‘’propaganda’’ started to present negative connotations. In Germany this new way to express information among the population was invented by the Nazi’s which name given was ´´negative propaganda.’’ The Völkischer Beobachter, that means, ``People´s observer´´, serves as an example of Nazi´s ideology to disturb human’s minds in order to make them do something they did not felt comfortable doing. Perhaps newspapers were established in many territories that were conquered during the war, Nazi’s journalist made negative propaganda tending to persuade. Hitler, in contrast, was a great speaker. His oratory was his major and most powerful weapon, a factor in his rise.
The Similarities of Tsarist and Communist Rule in Russia Both forms of government did depend on high degree of central control. However, some Tsars and Stalin exerted more central controls than others. Stalin’s stronger use of central control created differences between the two forms of government. The Tsars used different levels of central control.
The soviet communist party, or the Bolsheviks, always new that strong propaganda was essential to increase the consciousness of the masses. As stated in the Encyclopedia of Propaganda, " propaganda was central to Marxist-Leninist ideology long before the Bolshevik revolution of 1917."(675) The power of persuasion and coercion were exercised with great force by Soviet leaders. The two leaders whom utilized propaganda to influence public opinion in the USSR were Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin. Both men used many different facets of the media to spread their propaganda. They also used the troubled social climate along with the ignorance of the masses to custom tailor a regime that lasted for over seven decades.
... a change in this image to a realization that Stalin’s suppression of dissidents and opposition had real effects on soviet society and can not be justified by Marxist and Leninist Ideology instead they were just Stalin looking to maintain his autocracy.
Propaganda is a specific type of message presentation aimed at serving an agenda. At its root, propaganda is to propagate (spread around) a certain position or point of view, rather than just reporting the facts. Most propaganda is associated with politics or war time. It is used to help unite countries, especially the U.S. in the past. [Pg. 1, sec. 1]
ABSTRACT: Both domestic and foreign policies of each state presuppose a certain ideology as a foundation. In a broad sense, an ideology may be regarded as a certain 'system of coordinates,' an interpretational model of the world (Weltanschauung) including both empirico-theoretical (realizing a nation's place in regional and global contexts, with a clear understanding of national interests, goals and resources) and metatheoretical (comprehending a nation in the context of human history and culture) levels. Some of the main issues on the agenda in Russia are the clear understanding and definition of national goals and interests, the formulation of a strategy of development in economic, -social, political, etc., arenas, and the establishment of both domestic and foreign policy. I suggest that Russia currently does not have an ideology or a system of values able to unite the society. In short, I argue that Russia needs a new strategy of development, a new national idea which can replace (or fill the vacuum left by the collapse of) the old communist ideology.
After reviewing this I concluded that it is a good source because of its use of historical principles about communism and excerpts from Marx who is known for his studies and ideas that made communism what it is. This article also brings an established definition of communism with various established contributors to develop an educated definition. The article delivers very clean and clear information about communism and the history of communism.