1. society
2. unrest and war

What role did ideology play in
Stalin’s rise to power?
L/O – To identify the significance of ideology in
Stalin’s rise to power
Key Questions for this Section
1. How did ideology help Stalin achieve
power?
2. Was Stalin’s ideology a continuation of the
ideology established by Marx and Lenin or
a complete change?
3. What was the nature of the Stalinist state?
Was it totalitarian?
Stalin’s contribution before 1924
• Since the October Revolution of
1917, the Russian state had been
based on Marxist ideology. Stalin
contributed nothing to this at first.
• Stalin was never the ‘thinker’ of the
party. He was a practical man who’s
main roles were as editor of the
party newspaper, Pravda, and
organiser of bank raids and funding.
He was appointed as General
Secretary in 1922 for his
administrative skills, not his
philosophising.
• Stalin didn’t contribute to ‘Marxist’
ideology until the death of Lenin in
1924.
The Power Struggle as Catalyst
• The power struggle after Lenin’s
death meant that Stalin had to
form his own ideological
positions and ideas to defeat
others.
• All leading Bolsheviks accepted
the Marxist principle of
‘internationalism’.
• However the nature of this was
debated. ‘Socialism in one
country’ versus ‘Permanent
revolution’ became a key debate.
What was Internationalism?
‘Workers of the
world, unite!’
Marx & Engels,
• Marx believed that socialism and communism
could be achieved only after moving through a The Communist
Manifesto
‘capitalist’ stage. Russia in 1917 was not
(1847)
industrially developed enough to be considered
‘fully capitalist’.
• After the November 1917 Revolution, the
Bolsheviks hoped to hold on to power long
enough to inspire workers across the capitalist
world (Germany/Britain) to carry out their own
revolutions.
• These new socialist governments could then give
financial and technical aid to ‘backward’ Russia.
Internationalism
• With this assistance, Russia might also be able to put
socialism back on the agenda.
• Many Bolsheviks like Trotsky feared that the Bolshevik
Revolution would fail without outside support from more
industrialised countries.
• The signs of revolution were encouraging in 1918-1920,
especially in Germany.
• By 1923, these hopes had faded – most Bolsheviks remained
committed internationalists BUT what should the USSR do if
no help came from other countries?
Socialism in One Country
• This concept wasn’t revealed by Stalin until ten
months after Lenin’s death in November 1924.
• It stressed the need for peace and stability and
stated that, despite its backwardness and
isolation, the USSR could construct socialism on
its own.
• Stalin also accused Trotsky of a lack of faith in
the Russian people for opposing this idea.
• Socialism in One Country was a complete
reversal of Marxist and Bolshevik ideology. Why
then were Party members willing to support it?
Permanent Revolution
• This concept was opposed to ‘Socialism in
One Country’. It argued that Russia was too
economically and culturally backward to be
able to achieve socialism without the
assistance of more advanced states.
• Russia should try to incite socialist
revolutions across Europe and the world.
• Trotsky had developed this theory from
Marx in 1906 and was shared by most
leading Bolsheviks including Lenin.
Why would a
policy of
Permanent
Revolution
be dangerous
for the
USSR?
How did ideology help Stalin?
• Many argued against Trotsky, saying that a
policy based on ‘Permanent Revolution’
would anger surrounding capitalist states
and risk further foreign intervention.
• Stalin and others claimed that ‘Socialism in
One Country’ would avoid this and give the
Russian people the peace they needed after
years of revolution and civil war.
• Many new members of the Communist
Party after 1924 were workers and peasants
with little or no knowledge of Marxism –
therefore they were easily persuaded by
Stalin’s arguments.
What was ‘Marxist-Leninism’?
• Stalin also created the idea of ‘MarxistLeninist’ orthodoxy and claimed Trotsky
opposed this.
• This idea misrepresented what Lenin and
Trotsky had said in the past, exaggerating
the differences between Trotsky and Lenin,
and hiding disagreements between Stalin
and Lenin. (e.g. Jan 1923, Lenin’s Testament)
• It was essentially a way for Stalin to appear
as the direct descendent of Marx and Lenin.
He was the ‘true successor’ of Lenin, not
Trotsky.
What did Marx believe?
• Marxism IS an internationalist movement.
Capitalism had created a ‘global economy’.
Therefore an international working-class
movement was needed to defeat it and
establish world socialism and then
communism.
• Marx did NOT believe that societies would
‘inevitably’ progress to socialism and
communism. Societies could stagnate and even
revert to a less advanced system.
• In special circumstances, a backward society
could ‘jump’ a stage – but only if aided by
sympathetic advanced societies. Russia could
not move on its own!
What did Lenin believe?
• Lenin’s main adaption of Marxism was the
idea of ‘democratic centralism’ as stated in
his book, ‘What is to be Done?’ (1902).
• All members of the party could form
factions to argue their points of view
(democratic) however once the party had
made a decision, no more discussion was
allowed (centralism).
• Trotsky argued that Democratic Centralism
could allow someone to become a dictator
over the party too easily.
What did Lenin believe?
• When Lenin banned ‘Factionalism’ in 1921,
it seemed that this possibility was
becoming real. Lenin argued that this ban
was only temporary.
• Lenin also believed that progress to the
next stage of human society could be
‘telescoped’ or advanced more quickly –
just like Marx’s idea of ‘permanent rev.’
• But crucially, Lenin believed this could be
done only with the support from other
countries. Trotsky supported him on this.
What did Stalin believe?
• Stalin’s main contributions to ideology were
the notions of ‘Marxism-Leninism’ and
‘Socialism in One Country.’ They were not
used before 1924.
• Marxism-Leninism came to mean what
Lenin (allegedly) believed and what Stalin
himself believed about political issues.
• Marxism-Leninism became the ‘official’
ideology of the Communist Party under
Stalin. However as long as ‘Old Guard’
Bolsheviks existed, there would be doubts
over Stalin’s views.
What did Stalin believe?
• Stalin used socialism in one country as a
weapon against Trotsky and ‘Trotskyism’.
Stalin portrayed Trotskyism as ‘Petitbourgeois’ ideology at odds with Marxism
and Leninism.
• They said Trotsky had no faith in the ability
of Russian workers and peasants to
construct socialism in the USSR.
• Trotskyists came to see themselves as the
only true defenders of the legacy of Marx,
Engels and Lenin. They labelled Stalin’s
ideas as ‘Stalinism’.
Task (p. 24-29)
1. Why was ‘socialism in one country’ considered to be such a big
departure from Marxist theory?
2. How important do you think the failure of revolutions in the
rest of Europe was for political developments in the Soviet
Union?
3. What is meant by the term ‘Marxism-Leninism’?
4. What do Marxists understand by the term ‘dictatorship of the
proletariat’?
5. Produce a chart, divided into two columns, to summarise the
different political and ideological positions put forward by
Stalin and Trotsky during the 1920s. Then write a short
summary stating whether you think views of Stalin or Trotsky
were closest to the views of Marx and Lenin.
6. In your opinion, how important was ideology in Stalin’s rise to
power? Explain your opinion…