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Essay on life of fidel castro
Essays on fidel castro biography
Essay on life of fidel castro
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“A revolution is not a bed of roses. A revolution is a struggle between the future and the past” (Fidel Castro). People of power can be creative with their utterances. They can say anything to the people that they want to control. In this situation, both countries tested the limits. The political leaders of Cuba and China gained support by attracting specific types of followers, motivation and the utilization of propaganda. These leaders had campaigns targeting specific types of people to help gain power and to get support for their revolutionary ideas. The same mindset was in place when these leaders used propaganda and used their own motivation to get into people’s heads.
The leader of the Chinese Cultural Revolution, Mao Zedong, campaigned
One of Mao Zedong’s motivations for beginning the Cultural Revolution was his view that a cutting-edge bureaucratic ruling class had surfaced because of the centralized authoritarian nature of the political system, which had little hope for popular participation in the process of economic development (The Chinese Cultural Revolution revisited). The motivations of Fidel Castro, on the other hand, were different in that he wanted all people of all classes to be equal. The notion that the poverty-stricken could live a life equal to all other humans was an immense sense of happiness and
In China, Mao Zedong developed many things to entice people. The most effective uses of propaganda in the Cultural Revolution was the 100 Flowers movement and propaganda posters. The 100 flowers movement was meant to encourage popular criticism on the state and party officials to convey a more favorable communist party (Keesing’s research report). Although the 100 Flowers movement eventually died out, the use of posters to entice people’s support was successful. These pieces of art were sometimes the only source of information for the people because the campaigns were so short-lived (Cultural Revolution Campaigns. pg2). Not only were they simple and direct, but they were more dependable than the media. While similar, Cuban leaders used propaganda in different ways. Fidel Castro used pirate radio broadcasts, public displays and interviews to makes his army seem bigger and more powerful then it was. This, in turn, led the people to support Fidel
Little by little, the free people of Cuba came to realize it could happen there. The grim facts of life on an island that became a police state” (Frankel 59). Every day, Castro came closer to controlling every aspect of life in Cuba. Fidel Castro even took control of the schools in Cuba, throwing out any teacher who he thought might be “disloyal” or disagreeing with Communism.... ... middle of paper ...
During the Cultural Revolution Mao Zedong , people also knew him as Mao Zedong Tse tung was the Chinese ruler. He ruled the country during this time known as Chairman of the Communist Party of China. Moa was very well educated in Western and Chinese traditions. During the year 1918 Mao Zedong had a job as a librarian assistant at Peking University. He would call himself a Marxist in the of 1920 and he helped found the current Chinese Communist party Communist formed an alliance during 1923 with a man called Sun Ya sen and his Nationalist party. After that Mao Zedong quit the current job he had as a teacher to become a poli...
“What light is to the eyes - what air is to the lungs - what love is to the heart, freedom is to the soul of man” (Brainy Quotes). Light is essential to the eyes, love is what makes the heart beat, and freedom is the hope of man kind; all of which are essential to the happiness of humanity. Having to live without these rights is a difficult way of living. For example, Cubans have suffered time after time in pursuit of their freedom, but sadly they never accomplish their goal. They live in fear of their broken government, but never stop fighting for freedom. In the early 20th century, Cuba was a democracy. From 1940 to 1944 Fulgencio Batista, a Cuban politician, was Cuba’s president. In 1952 he decided to run again, but when it was apparent he’d lose, Batista seized power before the election took place. The citizens were outraged causing them to turn against their flawed democracy that was brought upon by the election. As a result, Fidel Castro, a communist revolutionary political man, began to plot Batista’s downfall. The Cuban Revolution, also known as Castro’s Revolution, began on July 26, 1952, and ended January, 1, 1959. After Batista, Cuba’s former president, fled the country, Castro took complete control and turned Cuba into a communist country. The Revolution brought upon: many deaths, censored news and publicity, and no freedom of speech. Throughout the years Castro stayed in power, but due to health issues originating on July 31, 2006, he had to step down. After Castro returned, he took control of Cuba up until February 19, 2008. He then abdicated his place as dictator and handed down his position to his brother, Raul Castro.
Mao Zedong was a very influential man in history. He forever changed the face of Chinese politics and life as a whole. His communist views and efforts to modernize China still resonate in the country today. Jonathan Spence’s book titled Mao Zedong is a biography of the great Chinese leader. Spence aims to show how Mao evolved from a poor child in a small rural village, to the leader of a communist nation. The biography is an amazing story of a person’s self determination and the predictability of human nature. The book depicts how a persuasive voice can shape the minds of millions and of people. It also shows the power and strength that a movement in history can make. This biography tells an important part of world history-the communist takeover of China.
Mohandas Gandhi and Mao Zedong were two great leaders who succeeded in many ways by their actions and decisions. Gandhi was an Indian leader and Mao a Chinese leader. However, their approach to success, peace, and ultimately, a revolution, was very different. Mao favored peace through violence, and Gandhi favored peace through non-cooperation and standing up for what is right. He also believed that these changes will be accomplished by “conscious suffering”, was the way he put it. However, despite their differences, these two leaders were similar too. They were both very charismatic leaders who successfully made it through their revolutions. Mao’s revolution led to change in class structure while Gandhi’s revolution involved India as a country, and he wanted people to realize that working together is a great way to gain independence. While Mao and Gandhi both believed that each of their countries have the need of independence, their views differed when it came to the use of violence, development towards the revolution, and their thoughts on a caste system.
Cuba's political history carries a pattern: when the masses are disillusioned by the current ruler, they turn to a young, strong-willed leader-of-the-people as their new ruler, only to become disillusioned to that ruler when he becomes too oppressive. It has seemed a never- ending cycle. Batista and Castro were both well-regarded leaders initially who appealed strongly to the masses and common citizen. Later, both established dictatorships and lost the support of many of those that they governed. Castro and Batista are each guilt of repression and corruption within their governments. For example, at some point under each regime, the constitution was either suspended or not followed at all. Castro did, though, make one very important contribution to Cuba's political system: Socialism. For the first time, Castro and Che Guevara a socialist plan called the New Man theory which called for developing an ideology amongst citizens that would call for working not for personal enrichment, but for social betterment.
There may be some question over Fidel Castro’s achievements in providing economic success, or democracy to Cuba in the last forty five years or so. However Cuba’s record on providing egalitarian health care and education to the masses have generally been agreed as a success story, even by Castro’s old enemy the United States. “To be educated is to be free,” (Marti in Marshall, 1987, p146) has become one of the more popular revolutionary slogans and has been greatly adhered to by Castro’s government. While health care is articulated in the 1975 Cuban constitution as being “the right of all and the responsibility of the state” (Feinsilver, 1993, p26). The social political stance of Castro’s government has been the driving force behind the success in health care and education. Issues such as housing, employment, health care and education are viewed as a basic human right and are in theory guaranteed by the state to all. In Cuba, health care indicators are also seen as a measure of the government’s efficiency and performance. Other socialist states that have come and gone over the last century have also professed to put these issues at the forefront of priority. States such as Russia and China have to a lesser or greater degree failed to provide the standard of services provided in Cuba. “Until 1969 China’s health care system served only the urban population, which represented about 15 percent of the total population” (Feinsilver, 1993, p2). There are certainly factors that make this comparison unfair but Cuba’s achievements in providing these social services are still quite remarkable given its economic position. By truly placing education and healthcare as one of the fundamental priorities of the revolution, and developing specific programs and initiatives to deal with these two social issues, Cuba managed to succeeded where others more wealthy nations failed. The use of popular participation and central government control also were powerful tools in implementing these social policies. It would now be useful to look at some of these initiatives that have been taken by the Cuban government that enabled it to equal if no surpass education and health standards in many developed countries.
People have different reasons to start a revolution. However, the road to freedom is always full of one thing, death. The Cuban Revolution was a civil war led by rebel Fidel Castro with the goal of getting dictator Fulgencio Batista out of office. While the American Revolution also had a very strong leader in George Washington and a similar goal of attempting to gain control of the government the way they got there was very different. The Cuban and American Revolutions had many distinct characteristics that made them successful. People in the US and Cuba wanted a new system of government, but not necessarily for the same reasons. In Cuba, dictator Batista was a cruel being who was not helping the country. At the same time, Americans wanted reform so they could be a part of government. Every person in Cuba knew that Batista needed to be stopped, and eventually a rebel leader arose. Whereas, in America everyone King George needed to be stopped, but instead of just one leader, the whole nation rose to the occasion. Cuba becomes freed from the dictatorship of Batista, but instead of getting better, life in Cuba got worse. Cuba may not have been better off, but America was now thriving with their lives and government back under control. Americans and Cubans were both looking for a new government, but for contrasting reasons and with different results.
Everyone knows the name Fidel Castro, the revolutionary of Cuba. At the University of Havana in 1945 is where Fidel Castro began his long and treacherous journey as a radical nationalist. (Fidel: The Untold Story). He fought the infamous Flugencio Batista in the name of social justice until victory was won. He claimed to have fought for a democratic Cuba and a restoration of constitutional government and Cuban sovereignty, but he also stood for socialism and communist ideals. As Tim Padgett from Times Magazine on page 42 stated “Fidel imported old-world Marxism and its perverse notion that social justice is best delivered via the injustice of autocracy.” He supported everything the US and pro-democracy states despised and stood as a revolutionary
Fidel Castro was a man who had a target on his head. Lots of people from all over the world wanted him dead. Fidel Castro wasn’t a capitalist person, he was a Communist.
Stephanie Griest’s rebellion against political norms helped her to become more culturally competent and aware of the political corruption that exists similarly in the U.S. and abroad. As Griest reminisces about her experiences in Moscow, she realizes how state propaganda can have an effect on a nation’s concept of reality, even in the U.S. “After finding some disconcerting similarities between our respective ideological frameworks, the Soviets revered mass murderers; we honor presidents who kept slaves, sent indigenous people on death marches and waged brutal wars on developing nations. China’s news gets filtered through the state, ours through mega-media outlets. Cuba may not hold democratic elections, but can we really after our corrupt 2000
Castro wanted to expand Cuba’s education system. His primary goal was the extension of education and other social services. In his autobiography, Castro has stated that “[he is] a Socialist, a Marxist, and a Leninist” (Fidel Castro 2008). Being a Socialist indicates that Castro wanted a range of economic and social
Castro’s involvement with the foreign and domestic politics during the early Cold War period greatly influenced the outcome of the Cuban Revolution. Without the actions taken by foreign powers like the United States and Russia, some events on the domestic front may have had very different results. It is important to understand how every nation’s foreign policies can influence more than just one other nation, and this was especially true for Cuba. It was because of these events that produced the communist Cuba that we are familiar with today.
The development of Maoism was a result of a long and thoughtful process, which evolved from traditional Marxism. Despite being a great supporter of Marxist theory, Mao’s own political views were heterogeneous and not strictly Marxist. The main components of Maoism, including peasant revolt and following the mass line, guerrilla tactics and army organisation, political reforms and economic and social reforms, were perhaps the solution to China’s complications explaining the popularity of the Communist regime within provincial areas. These policies had two key impacts, allowing the relationship with the peasantry and localised Chinese people to flourish, and the complete and decisive split with the Comintern after using their ideology as a baseline. Finally, at the consequence of these impacts, Mao was able to consolidate and gain dictatorial power.
Stalin was able to gain the support of the citizens of the Soviet Union through constant propaganda. He used propaganda to make himself “a god-like figure (Ellis and Esler 2052)” in order to boost morale and faith in Stalin and the communist government. Propaganda was a tool used to build up a “cult of personality” around Stalin, which created him as an ideal leader and hero. With the use of technology, “the party bombarded the public with relentless propaganda (2052)”. The government used several types of propaganda to spread Stalin’s message and beliefs. Radios