Saturday 24 April 2010

How successful was Stalin's economic reforms? Explain your answer. [12]

Introduction:
When Stalin assumed power in the USSR by the second half of 1920s, he began to introduce economic reforms with the main intention of transforming the USSR from a backward country to a modern one.

Main Body:
Stalin's economic reforms were successful in industrialising the Soviet Union. With his Five-Year Plans, there was rapid expansion of the Soviet Union's heavy industries. For example, steel production increased from 4 million tonnes in 1928 to 17.7 million tonnes in 1937. The coal production also jumped from 35.4 million tonnes to 128 million tonnes during the same period. The Soviet Union also improved on its transport and communication networks. In addition, industries were no longer concentrated in the Western part of the country, as more factories were built on the Eastern part. All these were important for a huge country like the Soviet Union. On the whole, the Soviet Union became the second most industrialised country in the world by 1940. There was an increase in the production of consumer goods as well, especially after 1935. In agriculture, farming became modernised as the introduction of collective farms allowed the government to introduce modern farming tools to all peasants, such as tractors.

Stalin's economic reforms had less success in the area of agricultural production. As collectivisation involved a great degree of force, there were resistance from the peasants. In retaliation, uncooperative peasants were sent to labour camps or killed. In addition, the forced collectivisation also led to the large destruction of crops and livestock. These eventually led to an outbreak of famine that cost the lives of about 10 million peasants. Agricultural output also did not increase with the introduction of collectivisation. For example, grain harvest only increased slightly from 73.3 million tonnes in 1928 to 75 million tonnes in 1935. The number of cattle dropped from 70.5 million heads to 49.3 million heads during the same period. All these demonstrated the limitations brought about by collectivisation. For industrialisation, the focus on meeting the quantitative targets meant that, very often, the quality of the industrial products were not up to mark.

Friday 2 April 2010

To what extent was Stalin's position as the Secretary-General the main reason in winning the leadership contest in the 1920s? Explain your answer.

When Lenin died in 1924, a power struggle broke out. Eventually, it was Stalin who emerged victorious, due to certain factors that were in his favour.

One of his advantages was his position as Secretary-General. As Secretary-General of the Communist Party, Stalin had the power to give out many jobs in the Communist Party. This gave the opportunity to Stalin to distribute the important posts to those whom he trusted and those who supported him. As the Secretary-General, he was even able to suppress unfavouable information, such as Lenin's notes to recommend Stalin's removal as Secret-General. As Secretary-General, he also managed to build up his power base within the Communist Party, as he was situated in Moscow most of the time.

Another reason that explained Stalin's victory in the leadership contest was his political manoeuvers. Firstly, he created the image that he was close to Lenin so that he could be perceived as his successor, especially during Lenin's funeral, when he was the chief mourner. Secondly, he collaborated with his lesser rivals, Zinoviev and Kaminev, to deal with his biggest rival, Trotsky. His idea of “Socialism in one country” won the support of more party members than Trotsky's idea of “Permanent Revolution”. Eventually, Trotsky's image was so badly damaged that he was forced out of the Communist Party. Once Trotsky was no longer the threat to his position, Stalin turned his attention to his collaborators, Zinoviev and Kaminev, and got rid of them as well.

The weaknesses of Stalin's rivals also contributed to Stalin's victory. Trotsky's background was a burden to him, as he was not a Bolshevik originally, a fact that was fully exploited by Stalin. Trotsky's absence from Lenin's funeral created a negative image of him, who was perceived as arrogant and disrespectful. His main power base was the Red Army, which did not allow him to build up his support in the Communist Party, which made all the key decisions in the USSR. As such, it was not difficult for Stalin to oust him from the leadership contest. As for Zinoviev and Kaminev, they failed to see how ruthless Stalin could be and could never really challenge Stalin in the leadership contest. By the 1930s, both of them were purged.