http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,842810,00.html
This is a news story from Times Magazine from Friday, September 23, 1966. No specific journalist is listed but since Time produced it, it is probably reliable, although also from a Western viewpoint, which limits the first-hand experience and opinions that can be gained from people who were actually there when the Red Guards existed in China, and also ensures a negative portrayal of the Communist activities (e.g. the diction in use such as "rampage" and "roughing up" [4th paragraph]).
This connects to what we're studying because it's about the Red Guards - their formation, uniforms, activities, violence etc. and even the Chinese press's reporting of these incidents. It enhances what we learned because it gives current reports of the events (it was written in 1966 when these things happened) and adds details about the history and paints visual imagery with its descriptions.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Monday, December 7, 2009
IRL #9
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efBQKHOfW60
This is an educational video clip on Mao Zedong's Communist plans and the Great Leap Forward. Its origin (a limitation) is unnamed other than that it was posted on Youtube by some user, which does not give it much credibility. However, I know some of the facts in it to be true, and it is presented in a manner typical of historical videos (including the voice/words of the narrator and the footage shown), so I am sure it was not produced by some random student or something.
It connects to what we're studying in class since it talks about the Great Leap Forward and events leading up to it, some of Mao's goals, all the private furnaces in China to produce steel, the killing of the sparrows, and the failure of the Great Leap. It enhances our learning by providing audio and visual imagery so I can see how things would have worked and gain a better understanding of the Chinese people's experience in this period. A limitation besides the non-clarity of the origin of this source is that it is only a 5 minute summary of the events, so one cannot learn great detail about it or see a specific example of a Chinese family who owned a mill, etc.
This is an educational video clip on Mao Zedong's Communist plans and the Great Leap Forward. Its origin (a limitation) is unnamed other than that it was posted on Youtube by some user, which does not give it much credibility. However, I know some of the facts in it to be true, and it is presented in a manner typical of historical videos (including the voice/words of the narrator and the footage shown), so I am sure it was not produced by some random student or something.
It connects to what we're studying in class since it talks about the Great Leap Forward and events leading up to it, some of Mao's goals, all the private furnaces in China to produce steel, the killing of the sparrows, and the failure of the Great Leap. It enhances our learning by providing audio and visual imagery so I can see how things would have worked and gain a better understanding of the Chinese people's experience in this period. A limitation besides the non-clarity of the origin of this source is that it is only a 5 minute summary of the events, so one cannot learn great detail about it or see a specific example of a Chinese family who owned a mill, etc.
Monday, November 30, 2009
SGQ #8
Guiding questions:
Compare and contrast the economic and social policies of one left wing and one right wing single-party ruler.
Examine the status of women in two single-party states, each chosen from a different region.
MWH p.415-420
How successful was Mao Zedong in dealing with China's problems?
a. Problems facing Mao in 1949 (after long civil war and war with Japan)
1. railways, roads, canals and dykes had been destroyed and there were chronic food shortages
2. agriculture was inefficient and incapable of feeding the poverty-stricken masses
3. inflation seemed out of control
b. the constitution of 1950
1. who/what had authority for all the main decisions?
the Politburo (chosen by the State Council elected by the Congress)
2. who was eligible to be elected?
only communist party members could stand for election
c. Agricultural changes - what were the two steps taken to collectivize Chinese peasants?
1. land was taken from large landowners and redistributed among peasants
2. peasants were persuaded to join together in co-operative farms in order to increase food production
d. Industrial changes
1. who helped and was the model?
The russians (helped with cash, equipment and advisors)
2. what evidence of success was there?
i. full communications had been restored
ii. inflation was under control and economy was looking much healthier
e. the Hundred Flowers campaign
i. what was a cadre?
a group who organized the masses politically and economically (e.g. carried out collectivization)
ii. why might the cadres be threatened by technicians and engineers?
because the experts might be smarter than cadres and suggest other ways of doing their duties
iii. what was the solution?
Mao decided to allow open discussion and the blooming of "a hundred ideas"
iv. how did that work out for the government?
critics attacked the cadres, government, and Communist Party, so Mao stopped campaign and clamped down on critics
f. Summarize the two main features of the Great Leap Forward:
1. the introduction of communes - larger than collective farms (up to 75,000 people); divided into brigades with elected councils (performed functions of local government).
2. A complete change of emphasis in industry - much smaller factories, and backyard steel furnaces set up. Communes also undertook building roads, canals, dams, reservoirs and irrigation channels.
3. what was the short term effect of the Great Leap Forward?
i. opposition to the communes
ii. a series of bad harvests (1959-61)
iii. withdrawal of all Russian aid (following breach b/w china and russia)
4. what was the long term effect of the Great Leap Forward?
i. agricultural and industrial production increased substantially
ii. by mid 1960s china was managing to feed massive populations without famine
iii. communes resulted in good government control while supplying jobs for everyone, spread of education and welfare services, and an improvement in the position of women in society
g. the Cultural Revolution
1. briefly summarize the differences between the right wing and left wing views within the Party:
RIGHT- thought that incentives for the workers were necessary if the communes were gunna function efficiently and that there should be expert managerial class to push forward with industrialization on the russian model instead of relying on cadres.
LEFT- (included Mao) wanted to avoid all capitalism and keep revolution on a pure Marxist-Leninist course
2. who carried out the Cultural Revolution?
Mao used his position as chairman to stir the masses (propaganda)... his supporters the Red Guards toured the country arguing his case
3. briefly describe the activities which made up the Cultural Revolution:
Red Guards started touring the country uplifting Mao's ideas -> Some of them got out of hand and they started attacking anyone in authority, not just Mao critics -> tons of people were disgraced -> Mao calls in army to restore order -> April 1969 revolution ended
4. what was the impact of the Cultural Revolution?
It caused great disruption, ruined millions of lives, and probably held up China's economic development by 10 years... BUT they recovered in the mid-1970s
Compare and contrast the economic and social policies of one left wing and one right wing single-party ruler.
Examine the status of women in two single-party states, each chosen from a different region.
MWH p.415-420
How successful was Mao Zedong in dealing with China's problems?
a. Problems facing Mao in 1949 (after long civil war and war with Japan)
1. railways, roads, canals and dykes had been destroyed and there were chronic food shortages
2. agriculture was inefficient and incapable of feeding the poverty-stricken masses
3. inflation seemed out of control
b. the constitution of 1950
1. who/what had authority for all the main decisions?
the Politburo (chosen by the State Council elected by the Congress)
2. who was eligible to be elected?
only communist party members could stand for election
c. Agricultural changes - what were the two steps taken to collectivize Chinese peasants?
1. land was taken from large landowners and redistributed among peasants
2. peasants were persuaded to join together in co-operative farms in order to increase food production
d. Industrial changes
1. who helped and was the model?
The russians (helped with cash, equipment and advisors)
2. what evidence of success was there?
i. full communications had been restored
ii. inflation was under control and economy was looking much healthier
e. the Hundred Flowers campaign
i. what was a cadre?
a group who organized the masses politically and economically (e.g. carried out collectivization)
ii. why might the cadres be threatened by technicians and engineers?
because the experts might be smarter than cadres and suggest other ways of doing their duties
iii. what was the solution?
Mao decided to allow open discussion and the blooming of "a hundred ideas"
iv. how did that work out for the government?
critics attacked the cadres, government, and Communist Party, so Mao stopped campaign and clamped down on critics
f. Summarize the two main features of the Great Leap Forward:
1. the introduction of communes - larger than collective farms (up to 75,000 people); divided into brigades with elected councils (performed functions of local government).
2. A complete change of emphasis in industry - much smaller factories, and backyard steel furnaces set up. Communes also undertook building roads, canals, dams, reservoirs and irrigation channels.
3. what was the short term effect of the Great Leap Forward?
i. opposition to the communes
ii. a series of bad harvests (1959-61)
iii. withdrawal of all Russian aid (following breach b/w china and russia)
4. what was the long term effect of the Great Leap Forward?
i. agricultural and industrial production increased substantially
ii. by mid 1960s china was managing to feed massive populations without famine
iii. communes resulted in good government control while supplying jobs for everyone, spread of education and welfare services, and an improvement in the position of women in society
g. the Cultural Revolution
1. briefly summarize the differences between the right wing and left wing views within the Party:
RIGHT- thought that incentives for the workers were necessary if the communes were gunna function efficiently and that there should be expert managerial class to push forward with industrialization on the russian model instead of relying on cadres.
LEFT- (included Mao) wanted to avoid all capitalism and keep revolution on a pure Marxist-Leninist course
2. who carried out the Cultural Revolution?
Mao used his position as chairman to stir the masses (propaganda)... his supporters the Red Guards toured the country arguing his case
3. briefly describe the activities which made up the Cultural Revolution:
Red Guards started touring the country uplifting Mao's ideas -> Some of them got out of hand and they started attacking anyone in authority, not just Mao critics -> tons of people were disgraced -> Mao calls in army to restore order -> April 1969 revolution ended
4. what was the impact of the Cultural Revolution?
It caused great disruption, ruined millions of lives, and probably held up China's economic development by 10 years... BUT they recovered in the mid-1970s
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
IRL #8
http://www.rsf.org/spip.php?page=article&id_article=34630
This is a news article about China's past 60 years of censorship; it was published on October 1, 2009 by 'Reporters Without Borders', although no one author is specified. It connects to what we're learning in class because it's about Mao's imposing of stringent censorship regulations in the time of his rule, and the Communist government's continuance of that for the past 60 years into modern day China. It enhances what we've learned by providing details about which agencies/newspapers (for example, People's Daily) continue to be directly controlled by the government, a sort of timeline of the editorial/journalistic loss of freedom in China, and a visual (picture) of a propaganda poster. A limitation when using this source is that it does not cite the quotes and information it uses, so it is difficult to place full trust in their claims.
This is a news article about China's past 60 years of censorship; it was published on October 1, 2009 by 'Reporters Without Borders', although no one author is specified. It connects to what we're learning in class because it's about Mao's imposing of stringent censorship regulations in the time of his rule, and the Communist government's continuance of that for the past 60 years into modern day China. It enhances what we've learned by providing details about which agencies/newspapers (for example, People's Daily) continue to be directly controlled by the government, a sort of timeline of the editorial/journalistic loss of freedom in China, and a visual (picture) of a propaganda poster. A limitation when using this source is that it does not cite the quotes and information it uses, so it is difficult to place full trust in their claims.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
SGQ #7
IBSL2 SGQ7
QWs:
Compare and contrast the economic and social policies of one left wing and one right wing single-party ruler.
Examine the status of women in two single-party states, each chosen from a different region.
In what ways did one ruler of a single-party state try to use education to support his regime?
MWH 369-378
4. What was everyday life and culture like under Stalin?
a. Why was life hard?
i. food - shortage due to concentration on heavy industry, famine and bad harvests. Amount of bread eaten by average worker in 1933 was half what it was in 1900, and average wages were 3/5 what they had been in 1928.
ii. housing - shortage caused by rapid urban population growth (31 mill increase b/w 1926-39). local Soviets controlled housing -> Middle class families had to share their homes, and workers lived in barracks.
iii. the nomenklatura - the existence of special elite groups such as government officials made ordinary people angry that they were suffering while the elite had all these privileges (bread delivered to their house, a country house...); there was a "them and us" attitude.
b. What signs of improvement were there?
i. food supplies improved and all rationing was abolished in 1936 (provision of free meals in factory canteens and free work clothes helped)
ii. education and healthcare were free, and the # of schools and medical centers was increasing
iii. more recreation facilities-by the end of the 1930s there were almost 30,000 cinemas
iv. 'culturedness' spread its way into the workplace and shops; workers were made to take care of hygiene, and sanitation regulations were introduced into bread shops etc.
c. The state, women, and the family
i. Why was life hard for women?
1. so many men had disappeared during collectivization, the famine, and the Purges -women were left to work + parent
2. by 1940 about 2/3 of the workforce in light industry was women and many did men's work such as construction
ii. What two goals did the government have for women?
1. provide much of the workforce for the industrialization drive
2. encourage and strengthen the family unit
iii. What policies did the government adopt towards women?
1. build daycares and nurseries (# doubled in 2 years 1929-30)
2. mid 1930s: laws were passed encouraging women to have as many babies as possible; abortion made illegal except if woman's life was in danger
3. maternity leave up to 16 weeks was allowed and there were various subsidies and other benefits for pregnant women
iv. What was life like for upper-class or well-educated women?
they had professional jobs and were seen by the state as part of the campaign to 'civilize' the masses... their main duty was to make a comfortable home life. The Wives' Movement eventually encouraged them to learn to drive lorries, shoot, and fly planes so they could be ready to take men's places if they had to go to war.
d. Education
i. What improvements were made to education?
1. January 1930 law passed that all 8-11 yr. olds have to be enrolled in school -> # of students increased from 14-20 million
2. by 1940 there were 199,000 schools, and many new training colleges were set up for teachers
3. literacy rate went up from 94->99 (towns) and 86->98 (rural)
ii. What were some of the goals of education?
1. turn the younger generation into good, orthodox soviet citizens; religion and 'bourgeois' practices were presented as superstitious
2. strict discipline enforced by teachers with emphasis on science and math
e. Religion
i. Was was the Communist view of religion?
they were atheists who accepted Marx's claim that religion was invented by ruling classes to keep people under control. Bolshevism is only religion; people should worship communist state not god.
ii. What actions did the government take towards religious organizations?
-lenin had attacked Orthodox church: seizing of all property, arresting of priests -church/state relations were bettering but then when some priests opposed collectivization, Stalin started secretly organizing destruction of thousands of priests, muslim/jewish leaders, and churches (by 1941 barely any churches left)
iii. What was the people's reaction to those policies/actions?
outrage, esp. in rural areas where priests were popular parts of the community. But then in 1942 when they were losing the war, Stalin decided they could use the church, and allowed them all to re-open
f. Literature and theater
-1928-1931 'Cultural Revolution' (rise of writers etc, against 'Bourgeoise' intellectuals)
-government dissolved AUV (All-russian union of writers) for being accused of publishing anti-soviet works, then Stalin passed law saying no material could be published portraying Party in bad light, so RAPP writing group was dissolved too
-in late 1930s many writers and theatre people were arrested and sent to labour camps or even executed
g. Art, architecture, and music
-strict rules on what artists could produce as well (mainly paintings/busts of Lenin/Stalin), architecture was boring (classical)
-Western music was condemned until mid 1930s
h. The cinema
-Stalin loved films and demanded that soviet films should be 'intelligible to the millions'
-films makers had a hard time because there were so many different languages in russia and the regime wanted so many (sometimes contradictory) themes incorporated into the movies (e.g. the glorious communist future)
-increase in movies and cinemas from 1933-40
QWs:
Compare and contrast the economic and social policies of one left wing and one right wing single-party ruler.
Examine the status of women in two single-party states, each chosen from a different region.
In what ways did one ruler of a single-party state try to use education to support his regime?
MWH 369-378
4. What was everyday life and culture like under Stalin?
a. Why was life hard?
i. food - shortage due to concentration on heavy industry, famine and bad harvests. Amount of bread eaten by average worker in 1933 was half what it was in 1900, and average wages were 3/5 what they had been in 1928.
ii. housing - shortage caused by rapid urban population growth (31 mill increase b/w 1926-39). local Soviets controlled housing -> Middle class families had to share their homes, and workers lived in barracks.
iii. the nomenklatura - the existence of special elite groups such as government officials made ordinary people angry that they were suffering while the elite had all these privileges (bread delivered to their house, a country house...); there was a "them and us" attitude.
b. What signs of improvement were there?
i. food supplies improved and all rationing was abolished in 1936 (provision of free meals in factory canteens and free work clothes helped)
ii. education and healthcare were free, and the # of schools and medical centers was increasing
iii. more recreation facilities-by the end of the 1930s there were almost 30,000 cinemas
iv. 'culturedness' spread its way into the workplace and shops; workers were made to take care of hygiene, and sanitation regulations were introduced into bread shops etc.
c. The state, women, and the family
i. Why was life hard for women?
1. so many men had disappeared during collectivization, the famine, and the Purges -women were left to work + parent
2. by 1940 about 2/3 of the workforce in light industry was women and many did men's work such as construction
ii. What two goals did the government have for women?
1. provide much of the workforce for the industrialization drive
2. encourage and strengthen the family unit
iii. What policies did the government adopt towards women?
1. build daycares and nurseries (# doubled in 2 years 1929-30)
2. mid 1930s: laws were passed encouraging women to have as many babies as possible; abortion made illegal except if woman's life was in danger
3. maternity leave up to 16 weeks was allowed and there were various subsidies and other benefits for pregnant women
iv. What was life like for upper-class or well-educated women?
they had professional jobs and were seen by the state as part of the campaign to 'civilize' the masses... their main duty was to make a comfortable home life. The Wives' Movement eventually encouraged them to learn to drive lorries, shoot, and fly planes so they could be ready to take men's places if they had to go to war.
d. Education
i. What improvements were made to education?
1. January 1930 law passed that all 8-11 yr. olds have to be enrolled in school -> # of students increased from 14-20 million
2. by 1940 there were 199,000 schools, and many new training colleges were set up for teachers
3. literacy rate went up from 94->99 (towns) and 86->98 (rural)
ii. What were some of the goals of education?
1. turn the younger generation into good, orthodox soviet citizens; religion and 'bourgeois' practices were presented as superstitious
2. strict discipline enforced by teachers with emphasis on science and math
e. Religion
i. Was was the Communist view of religion?
they were atheists who accepted Marx's claim that religion was invented by ruling classes to keep people under control. Bolshevism is only religion; people should worship communist state not god.
ii. What actions did the government take towards religious organizations?
-lenin had attacked Orthodox church: seizing of all property, arresting of priests -church/state relations were bettering but then when some priests opposed collectivization, Stalin started secretly organizing destruction of thousands of priests, muslim/jewish leaders, and churches (by 1941 barely any churches left)
iii. What was the people's reaction to those policies/actions?
outrage, esp. in rural areas where priests were popular parts of the community. But then in 1942 when they were losing the war, Stalin decided they could use the church, and allowed them all to re-open
f. Literature and theater
-1928-1931 'Cultural Revolution' (rise of writers etc, against 'Bourgeoise' intellectuals)
-government dissolved AUV (All-russian union of writers) for being accused of publishing anti-soviet works, then Stalin passed law saying no material could be published portraying Party in bad light, so RAPP writing group was dissolved too
-in late 1930s many writers and theatre people were arrested and sent to labour camps or even executed
g. Art, architecture, and music
-strict rules on what artists could produce as well (mainly paintings/busts of Lenin/Stalin), architecture was boring (classical)
-Western music was condemned until mid 1930s
h. The cinema
-Stalin loved films and demanded that soviet films should be 'intelligible to the millions'
-films makers had a hard time because there were so many different languages in russia and the regime wanted so many (sometimes contradictory) themes incorporated into the movies (e.g. the glorious communist future)
-increase in movies and cinemas from 1933-40
SGQ #6
IBSL2 SGQ6
QWs:
Compare and contrast the economic and social policies of one left wing and one right wing single-party ruler.
Examine the status of women in two single-party states, each chosen from a different region.
In what ways did one ruler of a single-party state try to use education to support his regime?
MWH 361-368
1. How successful was Stalin in solving Russia's economic problems?
a. What were Russia's economic problems?
Production from heavy industry was still surprisingly low, there was a lack of capital to finance the industrial progress Stalin wanted since foreign countries wouldn't invest in a communist country; Russia would need to produce more food for feeding workers and exporting.
b. What were the Five Year Plans?
i. How were they carried out?
The cash was provided from grain export money, charging peasants heavily for using government equipment, and "ploughing back of all profits and surpluses". Education was improved to make a whole generation of skilled workers, and some capitalist methods such as pay differentials were used in the workplace to encourage production.
ii. How successful were they? (Provide hard facts as evidence!)
In terms of getting production numbers up they were mostly successful: from 1929-1940 coal increased from 40.1 (million tons) to 164.9 (higher than Britain in 1940), pig-iron from 8.0 to 14.9, and steel from 4.9 to 18.4. However, since the focus was on heavy industry, the people's standard of living did not successfully develop; there were "primitive" housing conditions, a severe shortage of consumer goods, and severe punishments for bad workers.
c. What does collectivization mean? The idea that small farms and holdings belonging to the peasants should be merged to form large collective farms jointly owned by the peasants.
i. How was it carried out?
Policy was passed in 1929. Collectivization was carried out by brute force; armies of party members forced unwilling peasants to join, encouraged poorer peasants to seize the property of richer unwilling peasants, and arrested/sentenced to labor camps/shot any peasants who refused to join.
ii. How successful was it? (Provide hard facts as evidence!)
Production rose; amount of grain exported and taken by government rose significantly in 1930+1. However, much livestock had been slaughtered, AND total grain production did not really increase - in fact it was less in 1934 than it had been in 1928. There was a famine in 1932-3, especially in Ukraine, and over 5 million peasants died of starvation while 1 3/4 tons of grain were exported. So, collectivization was a failure.
2. How successful was Stalin in solving Russia's political problems?
a. What were Russia's political problems?
i. decrease of gov't popularity/growing opposition to Stalin in the Party (circulated document called 'Ryutin Platform' calling for removal of Stalin and slow-down of procedures.
ii. a new constitution was needed to consolidate Stalin/communist hold on country
iii. some non-Russian parts of country wanted to become their own nation; Stalin said no.
b. The Purges and Great Terror
i. What were the "purges"?
They were the political "cleansing" (expelling and sentencing - no killing) of "dissident" party members..
ii. How were the purges justified?
1. The "dissidence" of party members
2. Kirov had been killed by a party member and a supposed plot to kill Stalin and the prime minister was "discovered"
iii. What was the Great Terror? How was it carried out?
The intense campaign from 1936-8 led by Stalin to eliminate anyone he distrusted after the murder of Kirov and the supposed plan of murder for Stalin and Molotov. Total executed and sent to labour camps in 1937-8 alone: more than 3 million. Hundreds of officials were arrested, tortured, and made to confess for crimes they (most of the time) hadn't committed, and they were forced to go to 'show trials'.
c. What was the purpose of the 1936 constitution? How did it work in practice?
The supposed purpose was to establish a more democratic government and let the people have a voice in electing members of the national assembly called the Supreme Soviet. However, in practice it was not democratic because there was only one candidate (the Communist choice) for each position, and their job was to elect members of 2 other groups, one of which Stalin was the secretary.
d. What was Stalin's two part approach for holding the union together? (since 47% of russia's population was non-russian and wanting independence)
i. National cultures an languages were encouraged and republics had certain amount of independence
ii. However, Moscow had the final say in all important decisions! Force would be used if necessary.
QWs:
Compare and contrast the economic and social policies of one left wing and one right wing single-party ruler.
Examine the status of women in two single-party states, each chosen from a different region.
In what ways did one ruler of a single-party state try to use education to support his regime?
MWH 361-368
1. How successful was Stalin in solving Russia's economic problems?
a. What were Russia's economic problems?
Production from heavy industry was still surprisingly low, there was a lack of capital to finance the industrial progress Stalin wanted since foreign countries wouldn't invest in a communist country; Russia would need to produce more food for feeding workers and exporting.
b. What were the Five Year Plans?
i. How were they carried out?
The cash was provided from grain export money, charging peasants heavily for using government equipment, and "ploughing back of all profits and surpluses". Education was improved to make a whole generation of skilled workers, and some capitalist methods such as pay differentials were used in the workplace to encourage production.
ii. How successful were they? (Provide hard facts as evidence!)
In terms of getting production numbers up they were mostly successful: from 1929-1940 coal increased from 40.1 (million tons) to 164.9 (higher than Britain in 1940), pig-iron from 8.0 to 14.9, and steel from 4.9 to 18.4. However, since the focus was on heavy industry, the people's standard of living did not successfully develop; there were "primitive" housing conditions, a severe shortage of consumer goods, and severe punishments for bad workers.
c. What does collectivization mean? The idea that small farms and holdings belonging to the peasants should be merged to form large collective farms jointly owned by the peasants.
i. How was it carried out?
Policy was passed in 1929. Collectivization was carried out by brute force; armies of party members forced unwilling peasants to join, encouraged poorer peasants to seize the property of richer unwilling peasants, and arrested/sentenced to labor camps/shot any peasants who refused to join.
ii. How successful was it? (Provide hard facts as evidence!)
Production rose; amount of grain exported and taken by government rose significantly in 1930+1. However, much livestock had been slaughtered, AND total grain production did not really increase - in fact it was less in 1934 than it had been in 1928. There was a famine in 1932-3, especially in Ukraine, and over 5 million peasants died of starvation while 1 3/4 tons of grain were exported. So, collectivization was a failure.
2. How successful was Stalin in solving Russia's political problems?
a. What were Russia's political problems?
i. decrease of gov't popularity/growing opposition to Stalin in the Party (circulated document called 'Ryutin Platform' calling for removal of Stalin and slow-down of procedures.
ii. a new constitution was needed to consolidate Stalin/communist hold on country
iii. some non-Russian parts of country wanted to become their own nation; Stalin said no.
b. The Purges and Great Terror
i. What were the "purges"?
They were the political "cleansing" (expelling and sentencing - no killing) of "dissident" party members..
ii. How were the purges justified?
1. The "dissidence" of party members
2. Kirov had been killed by a party member and a supposed plot to kill Stalin and the prime minister was "discovered"
iii. What was the Great Terror? How was it carried out?
The intense campaign from 1936-8 led by Stalin to eliminate anyone he distrusted after the murder of Kirov and the supposed plan of murder for Stalin and Molotov. Total executed and sent to labour camps in 1937-8 alone: more than 3 million. Hundreds of officials were arrested, tortured, and made to confess for crimes they (most of the time) hadn't committed, and they were forced to go to 'show trials'.
c. What was the purpose of the 1936 constitution? How did it work in practice?
The supposed purpose was to establish a more democratic government and let the people have a voice in electing members of the national assembly called the Supreme Soviet. However, in practice it was not democratic because there was only one candidate (the Communist choice) for each position, and their job was to elect members of 2 other groups, one of which Stalin was the secretary.
d. What was Stalin's two part approach for holding the union together? (since 47% of russia's population was non-russian and wanting independence)
i. National cultures an languages were encouraged and republics had certain amount of independence
ii. However, Moscow had the final say in all important decisions! Force would be used if necessary.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Kirov Murder (Activity p. 210)
I find Source 13.6 hard to believe because the speaker seems very disorganized with her evidence, which seems lacking (all her testimonies have been "destroyed"), and it was during a time when Stalin was attacked, so I find it improbable that her last statement is true: "It has been irrefutably proved that the murder of Kirov was organized by Stalin". Source 13.7 also does not present any specific evidence to back up the claims made. However, the thing written in Nikolayev's diary about personal revenge seems pretty clear that he was not doing on account of Stalin's orders, so I think I am leaning towards the theory that Stalin was not involved. I think it is 'certain' that Nikolayev was indeed the murderer since there is no evidence whatsoever against that fact and a substantial amount for it, and judging from what I read in the sources, I think it is highly likely that the biggest motive he had was personal reasons, but probable that the NKVD also encouraged/inspired/aided him in his assassination of Kirov because of their interests in preserving the strong role of the NKVD, etc.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Essay Outline
Question: Compare and Contrast the economic policies of two single-party state rulers.
Thesis: Because Hitler and Stalin had different economic goals in mind for Germany and Russia, their economic policies in the 1920s-30s were mostly different. Although they both incorporated a drive for industrialization and Plans with set targets for outputs, Autarky-seeking Nazi Hitler focused less on agriculture than did the Collectivization-striving Socialist Stalin who also developed a Centrally-planned economy.
I. General/Economy goals:
1. Germany:
A. Autarky (self-sufficiency)
B. unify industry for state support
B. industrial preparation for war
2. Russia:
A. Establish Socialism
B. feed Russia
II. Methods for achieving goals:
1. Germany/Hitler
A. four year plan (emphasis on heavy industry):
a. fix prices
b. control raw materials
c. control investment / demand specific production from farmers/factory owners
B. Reich Entailed Farm Law of May 1933 -> farms may not be mortgaged
2. Russia/Stalin
A. Five Year Plan(s)
B. Collectivization (emphasis on agriculture for the economy) -> Canceling of collectivization -> Re-collectivization
C. Continued grain requisitioning and export of grain
a. 1.73 million tons of grain exported in 1932 (during the worst part of the famine)
-grain was left rotting in railways sometimes, un-accessable to the starving people
D. CENTRALLY-PLANNED ECONOMY
a. state decides:
- what to produce, how much, by whom, at what priority, how it's done
b. production broken down into categories such as heavy industry, then a Commissariat was put in charge
c. instructions would be handed down from
Party -> Commissariat -> regional administrator -> manager of specific industrial enterprise
Thesis: Because Hitler and Stalin had different economic goals in mind for Germany and Russia, their economic policies in the 1920s-30s were mostly different. Although they both incorporated a drive for industrialization and Plans with set targets for outputs, Autarky-seeking Nazi Hitler focused less on agriculture than did the Collectivization-striving Socialist Stalin who also developed a Centrally-planned economy.
I. General/Economy goals:
1. Germany:
A. Autarky (self-sufficiency)
B. unify industry for state support
B. industrial preparation for war
2. Russia:
A. Establish Socialism
B. feed Russia
II. Methods for achieving goals:
1. Germany/Hitler
A. four year plan (emphasis on heavy industry):
a. fix prices
b. control raw materials
c. control investment / demand specific production from farmers/factory owners
B. Reich Entailed Farm Law of May 1933 -> farms may not be mortgaged
2. Russia/Stalin
A. Five Year Plan(s)
B. Collectivization (emphasis on agriculture for the economy) -> Canceling of collectivization -> Re-collectivization
C. Continued grain requisitioning and export of grain
a. 1.73 million tons of grain exported in 1932 (during the worst part of the famine)
-grain was left rotting in railways sometimes, un-accessable to the starving people
D. CENTRALLY-PLANNED ECONOMY
a. state decides:
- what to produce, how much, by whom, at what priority, how it's done
b. production broken down into categories such as heavy industry, then a Commissariat was put in charge
c. instructions would be handed down from
Party -> Commissariat -> regional administrator -> manager of specific industrial enterprise
Saturday, November 7, 2009
IRL #7
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/archives/b2bukhar.html
This is a "Speech of Bukharin", which turns into more of a recorded conversation between Bukharin and others, including Stalin, that was translated from the Russian and published online by the Library of Congress. It connects to what we're studying in class because we are learning about the denunciation of Bukarin and those considered "enemies of the state", and in this "speech" Bukharin denies the claims about his "differences of opinion with the party", and later on explains his ideas of membership in the party in accordance with the member's agreeing with the party leaders/ how points of view not in accordance with the leaders are "terroristic". It adds value to what we learned in class by providing a first-hand explanation of the Soviet view of terrorism and the connected goings-on in the party.
The source of this source, as I call it, seems very reliable since the Library's reported purpose is: "to make its resources available and useful to the Congress and the American people and to sustain and preserve a universal collection of knowledge and creativity for future generations." However, using this particular source (Bukharin's speech) has several limitations because A) the source does not give any specific dates for when the speech was made or information about how it was obtained or in what context it was given, and B) there are several "intervening pages of transcript missing", as well as blank spots in the text that were "illegible", so the "speech" is very choppy and does not make much sense when reading through it as a whole.
This is a "Speech of Bukharin", which turns into more of a recorded conversation between Bukharin and others, including Stalin, that was translated from the Russian and published online by the Library of Congress. It connects to what we're studying in class because we are learning about the denunciation of Bukarin and those considered "enemies of the state", and in this "speech" Bukharin denies the claims about his "differences of opinion with the party", and later on explains his ideas of membership in the party in accordance with the member's agreeing with the party leaders/ how points of view not in accordance with the leaders are "terroristic". It adds value to what we learned in class by providing a first-hand explanation of the Soviet view of terrorism and the connected goings-on in the party.
The source of this source, as I call it, seems very reliable since the Library's reported purpose is: "to make its resources available and useful to the Congress and the American people and to sustain and preserve a universal collection of knowledge and creativity for future generations." However, using this particular source (Bukharin's speech) has several limitations because A) the source does not give any specific dates for when the speech was made or information about how it was obtained or in what context it was given, and B) there are several "intervening pages of transcript missing", as well as blank spots in the text that were "illegible", so the "speech" is very choppy and does not make much sense when reading through it as a whole.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
IRL #6
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-04-02-1563257295_x.htm
This is a news story from USA Today, written by "Mansur Mirovalev, Associated Press Writer". It also includes a piece of an interview from Nikolai Baibakov, who served as Josef Stalin's oil commissar. It connects to what we're studying in class by its discussion of Baibakov's role in Stalin's Centrally-Planned Economy and in Gosplan, "the huge Soviet central planning agency"... It enhances what we've learned by giving more general information and examples about how the central-planning system worked, and some specific details about Baibakov's duties as Commissar of oil and head of Gosplan as well as Stalin's use of terror and violence to motivate lower Commissars etc. to get the jobs done that he wanted them to (it even quotes Stalin specifically telling Baibakov to control the oil just right or he would be shot). A limitation faced when using this source (for our class) is that the article is only about events in the 1940s and after, so it doesn't tell us much about the beginning of the centrally planned economy or how it came about... and also the article is structured pretty poorly in my opinion, so if you are looking for a certain piece of information, it's kind of confusing...
This is a news story from USA Today, written by "Mansur Mirovalev, Associated Press Writer". It also includes a piece of an interview from Nikolai Baibakov, who served as Josef Stalin's oil commissar. It connects to what we're studying in class by its discussion of Baibakov's role in Stalin's Centrally-Planned Economy and in Gosplan, "the huge Soviet central planning agency"... It enhances what we've learned by giving more general information and examples about how the central-planning system worked, and some specific details about Baibakov's duties as Commissar of oil and head of Gosplan as well as Stalin's use of terror and violence to motivate lower Commissars etc. to get the jobs done that he wanted them to (it even quotes Stalin specifically telling Baibakov to control the oil just right or he would be shot). A limitation faced when using this source (for our class) is that the article is only about events in the 1940s and after, so it doesn't tell us much about the beginning of the centrally planned economy or how it came about... and also the article is structured pretty poorly in my opinion, so if you are looking for a certain piece of information, it's kind of confusing...
Monday, October 19, 2009
IRL #5
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/archives/coll.html
This is an article/document from the Russian Archives (in the Library of Congress). It connects to what we're learning in class because it's about Stalin's collectivisation and industrialization plans. It enhances what we've learned by providing more details on the expectations, methods, focuses, and numerical goals of the First Five Year Plan (e.g. a goal of a "330 percent expansion in heavy industry alone"). Since this is from the Library of Congress which is a pretty reputable source, there are not many limitations for using this in the area of reliability, but a reader does have to sort for useful information and factual evidence among some of the words like "unrealistic" and "incalculable" that can form early judgements in the reader's mind about Stalin's plans...
This is an article/document from the Russian Archives (in the Library of Congress). It connects to what we're learning in class because it's about Stalin's collectivisation and industrialization plans. It enhances what we've learned by providing more details on the expectations, methods, focuses, and numerical goals of the First Five Year Plan (e.g. a goal of a "330 percent expansion in heavy industry alone"). Since this is from the Library of Congress which is a pretty reputable source, there are not many limitations for using this in the area of reliability, but a reader does have to sort for useful information and factual evidence among some of the words like "unrealistic" and "incalculable" that can form early judgements in the reader's mind about Stalin's plans...
Friday, October 9, 2009
IRL#4
http://video.google.com/videosearch?client=safari&rls=en&q=lenin's%20ways%20of%20maintaining%20power&oe=UTF-8&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wv#
This is a video, made by high school students, that summarizes the steps Lenin took to maintain power with the Bolsheviks over Russia. It enhances what we learned in class today by clearly and simply illustrating the policies Lenin put in place, such as the land decree which distributed the money and land of the rich among the peasants, and by making it easy to remember with audio and subtitles etc.
The limitations are many and pretty great when using this source because it only came from high school students and it is a mock summary of Lenin's policies with lack/inaccuracy of details, but at least it is valuable for understanding and remembering the basics of Lenin's methods for maintaining power.
This is a video, made by high school students, that summarizes the steps Lenin took to maintain power with the Bolsheviks over Russia. It enhances what we learned in class today by clearly and simply illustrating the policies Lenin put in place, such as the land decree which distributed the money and land of the rich among the peasants, and by making it easy to remember with audio and subtitles etc.
The limitations are many and pretty great when using this source because it only came from high school students and it is a mock summary of Lenin's policies with lack/inaccuracy of details, but at least it is valuable for understanding and remembering the basics of Lenin's methods for maintaining power.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
SGQ #5
QW's:
1. “The aims and policies of single-party state rulers rarely followed their declared ideology.” To what extent do you agree with this assertion?
2. Compare and contrast the rise to power of two rulers of single-party states, each chosen from a different region.
MWH 349-358
How successfully did Lenin and the Bolsheviks deal with their problems (1917-1924?)
I. How much support did the Bolsheviks have from the people?
a. the elections of November 1917
i. Bolshevik seats - 175 out of about 700
ii. Social Revolutionary seats - 370
iii. Mensheviks seats - 15
iv. "left wing" groups - 40
v. nationality groups - 80
vi. Kadets - 17
b. How did Lenin respond to the election results?
He was determined that the Bolsheviks were going to stay in power... after some anti-Bolshevik speeches at the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly, Lenin dispersed it with Bolshevik Red guards, claiming he was doing the ultimate form of democracy because the Bolsheviks knew what the workers actually wanted
II. What was the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (which Lenin supported because he thought it was worth it), and what were its conditions?
a. It was a treaty between... Russia and the Central Powers
b. Russia gave up
Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, the Ukraine, Georgia and Finland. This included:
i. 1/3 of Russia's farming land
ii. 1/3 of her population
iii. 2/3 of her coalmines
iv. 1/2 of her heavy industry
III. Why did the Bolsheviks resort to violence?
a. Violence from others (or from desperate situations ?)
i. Petrograd and Moscow - by Jan. 1918 severe food shortages. Lenin thinks Kulaks are hoarding huge quantities of grain to jack up the price; the Cheka was given the job of dealing with these criminals
ii. Ukraine - loss of Ukraine (important wheat sources) from signing of Treaty of Brest-Litovsk contributes to food shortages
iii. Social Revolutionaries - did their best to wreck the treaty and began a campaign of terror: assassinated German ambassador and a Bolshevik leader of the Soviet... tried to usurp power or cause an uprising to make Bolsheviks change their policies
iv. violence aimed at Bolshevik leaders - Aug 30, 1918: head of Petrograd Cheka was assassinated, and a woman shot Lenin twice
I_> Suggests that Bolsheviks became violent in response to desperate conditions
b. Lenin's flawed reasoning
i. Marx's predictions
1. That the collapse of capitalism would take place in 2 stages: first middle class bourgeois would set up a democracy,
2. then once Russia was industrialized, the proletariat industrial workers would create a classless society
ii. Russia's reality
1. Bolsheviks gained power too soon before full industrialization and before their most reliable supporters - the industrial workers - had become a big enough class to support them -> Bolsheviks are a minority gov't uncomfortably dependent on the support of the peasants
2. Law and order were breaking down and local soviets simply ignored the government's decrees
iii. Lenin's expectations for the rest of Europe
revolutions would soon follow in central and western europe, so that the new Soviet government would be surrounded by sympathetic neighboring governments
c. Liberal historical interpretation
Lenin and Trotsky were committed to the use of violence and terror from the beginning ("absolutely vital element of revolutionary government" -> e.g. CHEKA set up in December 1917, a time of no opposition)
IV. The Red Terror
a. against peasants - Red Army was used to take extra grain, Cheka suppressed peasant uprisings with thousands of killings/executions [in 1919 over 3000 more executions]
b. against political opponents - Social Revolutionaries etc. were rounded up and shot; people not guilty of any particular crime but seen as "Bourgeois" or "enemies of the people" were arrested and executed
c. against the former Tsar - July 1918: Lenin orders Cheka to shoot members of the royal family which were being babysat, because he didnt want the Whites to capture the Tsar and use him as a rallying point for all the anti-Bolshevists
V. Civil War
a. Which groups made up the "Whites"? Social Revolutionists, Menskeviks, ex-tsarist officers and any other groups who didnt like the Bolsheviks
b. What was the Whites' main goal? not to the restore the tsar, but to set up a democratic government on western lines
c. What was the role of other nations? Czechs had control of the TransSiberian Railway; Russia's allies from WW1 intervened to help the Whites: USA, Japan, France, and Britain sent troops and sent Kolchak to take over Moscow, but the well-trained Red Army forced Kolchak back and he was later captured and executed
d. What was the result of the Civil War? Bolsheviks won, although polish and french had taken Ukraine and White Russia
e. How were the communists able to win the Civil War?
i. the Whites were not centrally organized (strained lines of communication and lost peasant support because of their brutality and the peasants fear of losing their new land)
ii. the Red armies had more troops (outnumbered whites about 10:1, had leadership of Trotsky, and controlled modern industry -> supply of armaments)
iii. Lenin's War Communism (factories nationalized, private trade banned, food and grain seized from peasants to feed workers and troops) was successful at first to get them through the civil war
iv. popularity because of how Lenin presented the Bolsheviks as a "nationalist government fighting against foreigners"
VI. What were the effects of the Civil War?
a. civilian deaths - at least 8 million
b. economic changes - ruined; Rouble=1% its value in October 1917
VII. What was done about economic problems?
a. effects of war communism
i. peasants saw it pointless to produce more food that would just get seized, so they only produced enough for themselves -> worse food shortages aggravated by droughts in 1920-1.
ii. industry almost at a standstill. Mutiny at Kronstadt in march 1921 convinces lenin that a new approach was needed (hence, NEP)
b. reforms of the New Economic Policy
i. peasants were now allowed to keep surplus produce after a tax
ii. reintroduction of private trade
iii. Small industries returned to private ownership; foreign investment encouraged to help develop and modernize russian industry
c. successes of the NEP
i. revived incentive and food production increase
ii. production levels improving (most commodities not far from where they were in 1913)
iii. industrial workers who had a job were being payed real wages and had benefits
disadvantage: unemployment was higher than before, and there were still frequent food shortages
1. “The aims and policies of single-party state rulers rarely followed their declared ideology.” To what extent do you agree with this assertion?
2. Compare and contrast the rise to power of two rulers of single-party states, each chosen from a different region.
MWH 349-358
How successfully did Lenin and the Bolsheviks deal with their problems (1917-1924?)
I. How much support did the Bolsheviks have from the people?
a. the elections of November 1917
i. Bolshevik seats - 175 out of about 700
ii. Social Revolutionary seats - 370
iii. Mensheviks seats - 15
iv. "left wing" groups - 40
v. nationality groups - 80
vi. Kadets - 17
b. How did Lenin respond to the election results?
He was determined that the Bolsheviks were going to stay in power... after some anti-Bolshevik speeches at the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly, Lenin dispersed it with Bolshevik Red guards, claiming he was doing the ultimate form of democracy because the Bolsheviks knew what the workers actually wanted
II. What was the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (which Lenin supported because he thought it was worth it), and what were its conditions?
a. It was a treaty between... Russia and the Central Powers
b. Russia gave up
Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, the Ukraine, Georgia and Finland. This included:
i. 1/3 of Russia's farming land
ii. 1/3 of her population
iii. 2/3 of her coalmines
iv. 1/2 of her heavy industry
III. Why did the Bolsheviks resort to violence?
a. Violence from others (or from desperate situations ?)
i. Petrograd and Moscow - by Jan. 1918 severe food shortages. Lenin thinks Kulaks are hoarding huge quantities of grain to jack up the price; the Cheka was given the job of dealing with these criminals
ii. Ukraine - loss of Ukraine (important wheat sources) from signing of Treaty of Brest-Litovsk contributes to food shortages
iii. Social Revolutionaries - did their best to wreck the treaty and began a campaign of terror: assassinated German ambassador and a Bolshevik leader of the Soviet... tried to usurp power or cause an uprising to make Bolsheviks change their policies
iv. violence aimed at Bolshevik leaders - Aug 30, 1918: head of Petrograd Cheka was assassinated, and a woman shot Lenin twice
I_> Suggests that Bolsheviks became violent in response to desperate conditions
b. Lenin's flawed reasoning
i. Marx's predictions
1. That the collapse of capitalism would take place in 2 stages: first middle class bourgeois would set up a democracy,
2. then once Russia was industrialized, the proletariat industrial workers would create a classless society
ii. Russia's reality
1. Bolsheviks gained power too soon before full industrialization and before their most reliable supporters - the industrial workers - had become a big enough class to support them -> Bolsheviks are a minority gov't uncomfortably dependent on the support of the peasants
2. Law and order were breaking down and local soviets simply ignored the government's decrees
iii. Lenin's expectations for the rest of Europe
revolutions would soon follow in central and western europe, so that the new Soviet government would be surrounded by sympathetic neighboring governments
c. Liberal historical interpretation
Lenin and Trotsky were committed to the use of violence and terror from the beginning ("absolutely vital element of revolutionary government" -> e.g. CHEKA set up in December 1917, a time of no opposition)
IV. The Red Terror
a. against peasants - Red Army was used to take extra grain, Cheka suppressed peasant uprisings with thousands of killings/executions [in 1919 over 3000 more executions]
b. against political opponents - Social Revolutionaries etc. were rounded up and shot; people not guilty of any particular crime but seen as "Bourgeois" or "enemies of the people" were arrested and executed
c. against the former Tsar - July 1918: Lenin orders Cheka to shoot members of the royal family which were being babysat, because he didnt want the Whites to capture the Tsar and use him as a rallying point for all the anti-Bolshevists
V. Civil War
a. Which groups made up the "Whites"? Social Revolutionists, Menskeviks, ex-tsarist officers and any other groups who didnt like the Bolsheviks
b. What was the Whites' main goal? not to the restore the tsar, but to set up a democratic government on western lines
c. What was the role of other nations? Czechs had control of the TransSiberian Railway; Russia's allies from WW1 intervened to help the Whites: USA, Japan, France, and Britain sent troops and sent Kolchak to take over Moscow, but the well-trained Red Army forced Kolchak back and he was later captured and executed
d. What was the result of the Civil War? Bolsheviks won, although polish and french had taken Ukraine and White Russia
e. How were the communists able to win the Civil War?
i. the Whites were not centrally organized (strained lines of communication and lost peasant support because of their brutality and the peasants fear of losing their new land)
ii. the Red armies had more troops (outnumbered whites about 10:1, had leadership of Trotsky, and controlled modern industry -> supply of armaments)
iii. Lenin's War Communism (factories nationalized, private trade banned, food and grain seized from peasants to feed workers and troops) was successful at first to get them through the civil war
iv. popularity because of how Lenin presented the Bolsheviks as a "nationalist government fighting against foreigners"
VI. What were the effects of the Civil War?
a. civilian deaths - at least 8 million
b. economic changes - ruined; Rouble=1% its value in October 1917
VII. What was done about economic problems?
a. effects of war communism
i. peasants saw it pointless to produce more food that would just get seized, so they only produced enough for themselves -> worse food shortages aggravated by droughts in 1920-1.
ii. industry almost at a standstill. Mutiny at Kronstadt in march 1921 convinces lenin that a new approach was needed (hence, NEP)
b. reforms of the New Economic Policy
i. peasants were now allowed to keep surplus produce after a tax
ii. reintroduction of private trade
iii. Small industries returned to private ownership; foreign investment encouraged to help develop and modernize russian industry
c. successes of the NEP
i. revived incentive and food production increase
ii. production levels improving (most commodities not far from where they were in 1913)
iii. industrial workers who had a job were being payed real wages and had benefits
disadvantage: unemployment was higher than before, and there were still frequent food shortages
Saturday, October 3, 2009
IRL#3
http://www.owlnet.rice.edu/~rar4619/Images/chart.jpg
This is the link to an image, which had under it, the caption "The Nazis distributed charts like this one to educate the public about the different classes of Jews."
According to the website the image is from (the website does not have any labeled title or author but sites other printed and web sources), the chart was published/distributed by the Nazis.
This connects to what we're studying in class because it has to do with Hitler's ideology of races.
It adds value to what we've learned in class by providing a visual example of how the Nazi ideology separated classes and forbade certain marriages based on race, discriminated against Jews and blacks, and pushed this ideology on the public through propaganda like this chart.
Limitations when using this source are that the website itself does not seem to be well labeled with an author or anything, and the caption under the image gives limited information, which means we cannot be sure that the image did indeed come from the Nazis, and we cannot learn what the chart actually says because it is written in German; I do not speak German and the website does not translate or explain.
This is the link to an image, which had under it, the caption "The Nazis distributed charts like this one to educate the public about the different classes of Jews."
According to the website the image is from (the website does not have any labeled title or author but sites other printed and web sources), the chart was published/distributed by the Nazis.
This connects to what we're studying in class because it has to do with Hitler's ideology of races.
It adds value to what we've learned in class by providing a visual example of how the Nazi ideology separated classes and forbade certain marriages based on race, discriminated against Jews and blacks, and pushed this ideology on the public through propaganda like this chart.
Limitations when using this source are that the website itself does not seem to be well labeled with an author or anything, and the caption under the image gives limited information, which means we cannot be sure that the image did indeed come from the Nazis, and we cannot learn what the chart actually says because it is written in German; I do not speak German and the website does not translate or explain.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
SGQ #4
9-29-09
QW's:
1. “The aims and policies of single-party state rulers rarely followed their declared ideology.” To what extent do you agree with this assertion?
2. Compare and contrast the rise to power of two rulers of single-party states, each chosen from a different region.
MWH 309-318
1. What did National Socialism (actually Hitler's Nazism) stand for?
A. What were the movement's four general principles?
i. "national community" formed by all classes and parties united
ii. the ruthlessly efficient organization of all aspects of the lives of the masses (interests of state came before peoples interests)
iii. the entire state must be organized on a military footing, since it was likely that greatness could only be achieved by war
iv. "the race theory" - Aryan race, free of Jews, Slavs, homosexuals, etc
B. What evidence suggests Nazism was a "natural development of German history"?
i. British and American historians it was "a natural extension of earlier Prussian militarism and German traditions"
ii. Marxists historians believed National Socialism and fascism in general were the final stage of Western capitalism
iii. Sir Lewis Namier (Polish Jew historian) said that individual Germans are "useful, decent citizens, but in groups... are apt to develop tendencies that make them a menace to their fellow-men".
C . What evidence suggests Nazism was a "distortion of normal development" of German history?
Historians like Gerhard Ritter and K. D. Bracher argued that Hitler was striving to break away from the past and introduce something completely new.
D . What evidence suggests Nazism was a bit of both?
As said by Ian Kershaw, "the mentalities... of the elites and the masses which made Hitler's rise possible, were products of strands of German political culture" and "without the unique conditions in which he came to prominence, Hitler would have been nothing... he exploited the conditions brilliantly."
2. How did Hitler consolidate his power?
A. Actions leading up to the March election of 1933
i. Tried to whip up a majority using "all apparatus of state" including press and radio
ii. senior police officers were replaced with reliable nazis and 50,000 auxiliary policemen were called up
iii. meetings of all parties except nazis and nationalists were wrecked and speakers beat up
B. The Reichstag fire
i. what happened?
February 27 PM, Reichstag burned down apparently by a young Dutch anarchist called van der Lubbe (who the SA probably knew about and actually helped to start fires, so they could blame it on the communists)
ii. what did it mean?
That Hitler could use the fire to stir up fear of communism and ban the party. However, the Nazis still did not win enough seats to be the majority, so they were still dependent on the support of the nationalists (led by Papen and Hugenburg)
3. How was Hitler able to stay in power?
A. What was the Enabling Law?
It stated that the gov't could introduce laws without the approval of the Reichstag (laws would be drafted by the chancellor and put into effect the day they were published) for the next 4 years, could ignore the constitution and could sign agreements with foreign countries
B. How did the Enabling Law pass?
Such a major law needed a 2/3 majority, but Hitler surrounded the Reichstag meeting place (The Kroll Opera House) with his SS and SA, chanting "We want the bill, or fire and murder", and when the Catholic Centre Party voted for it... It passed by 441 to 94 votes.
C. What was gleichschaltung?
Hitler's policy of forcible co-ordination which turned germany into a totalitarian or fascist state. the gov't tried to control as many aspects of life as possible, using a huge police force and the Gestapo.
D. What were the characteristics of gleichschaltung?
i. ONE PARTY STATE; All political parties other than National Socialists banned
ii. Separate state parliaments lose all power, most functions taken over by a Nazi Special Commissioner. No more state, provincial, or municipal elections
iii. "The civil service was purged" (Jews and enemies of the state gotten rid of)
iv. Trade unions, a likely source of resistance, were abolished, their funds confiscated and leaders arrested. Replaced by german Labour Front, to which all workers had to belong and no strikes were allowed.
v. Education system closely controlled (distorted textbooks, professors closely monitored). Also, Hitler Youth (broke family bonds, taught children first duty to Hitler)
vi. Bans placed on contraceptives to help Aryan women have children; all "unfit" members of society were forcibly sterilized
vii. All communications and the media were controlled by the Minister of Propaganda (e.g. books considered "un-german" were banned
viii. How was the economic life of the country organized?
a. telling industrials what or what not to produce
b. moving workers to where labor was needed
c. encouraging farmers to increase agricultural yields
d. controlling food prices and rents
e. manipulating foreign exchange rates to avoid inflation
f. introducing vast schemes of public works (slum clearance, land drainage, and motorway building
g. forcing other countries to buy german goods (either refusing to pay cash for imports to germany, or by refusing permission to foreigners w/ german bank accounts to withdraw cash, so they had to spend it on german goods)
h. reduce dependence on foreign countries: manufacture synthetic rubber and wool + experiment to produce petrol from coal
i. increasing expenditure on armaments (1938-9 [in "peacetime"]: military budget was 52% of gov't spending)
ix. How was religion handled? : brought under state control
a. Catholics
1933 Hitler's Concordat with the Pope (would not interfere with church in any way), but then gov't broke that, dissolved catholic youth league, closed catholic schools down, and sent thousands of nuns and priests to concentration camps
b. Protestants
Hitler tried to organize protestant groups into a 'Reich Church'; when pastors protested, they were sent to concentration camps. But they continued to be the only constant quietly resistant group.
x. Above all, germany was a police state (police helped by Gestapo and SS to try and control all opposition to the state and send people to concentration camps etc. However, police were actually understaffed and relied heavily on common people coming forward with information.
xi. Anti-Semitism
a. how was it legalized?
The Nuremberg Laws of 1935 deprived jews of their german citizenship, forbade them to marry non-Jews...
b. examples of the law being carried out
1. Kristallnacht November 1938
2. Hollocaust
3. ?
E. How popular were Hitler's policies?
i. personal appeal - Hitler's use of huge military parades, displays, etc. appealed to the masses because it seemed he was offering action and a great new Germany.
ii. unemployment - Very successful and hence popular: huge public schemes, expanding party and administrative posts, and elimination of Jews etc. holding jobs provided jobs for many germans
iii. working people - the abolition of trade unions was made up for through the benefits from the Strength through Joy Organization: subsidized holidays in germany and abroad, cruises... holidays with pay, control of rents.
iv. upper class - wealthy industrialists and businessmen now felt safe from a communist revolution, were rid of trade unions, and felt promises about profit from public work schemes and rearmament
v. farmers - nazi aim of self-sufficiency in food production -> fixed prices on food assured profit. Also, farms were made hereditary and had to be passed on to next of kin, so farmers could not be forced to pay off debts by having their farms taken away
vi. the Army -
a. officers - liked Hitler because of his much publicized aim of setting aside the restrictions of the versailles Treaty by rearmament and expansion of army to full size
b. lower ranks - steady infiltration of National Socialists
c. Night of Long Knives - impressing to army leaders (how Hitler had "handled" the troublesome SA ["gangsters" led by a homosexual who wanted to be made a general] on June 30, 1934 by having the SS murder them)
vii. foreign policy - (see section 5.3) brilliant success! : breach of versailles, March 1938 Anschluss with Austria (Germany takes over Austria and gains good position for Italy and France, etc.
QW's:
1. “The aims and policies of single-party state rulers rarely followed their declared ideology.” To what extent do you agree with this assertion?
2. Compare and contrast the rise to power of two rulers of single-party states, each chosen from a different region.
MWH 309-318
1. What did National Socialism (actually Hitler's Nazism) stand for?
A. What were the movement's four general principles?
i. "national community" formed by all classes and parties united
ii. the ruthlessly efficient organization of all aspects of the lives of the masses (interests of state came before peoples interests)
iii. the entire state must be organized on a military footing, since it was likely that greatness could only be achieved by war
iv. "the race theory" - Aryan race, free of Jews, Slavs, homosexuals, etc
B. What evidence suggests Nazism was a "natural development of German history"?
i. British and American historians it was "a natural extension of earlier Prussian militarism and German traditions"
ii. Marxists historians believed National Socialism and fascism in general were the final stage of Western capitalism
iii. Sir Lewis Namier (Polish Jew historian) said that individual Germans are "useful, decent citizens, but in groups... are apt to develop tendencies that make them a menace to their fellow-men".
C . What evidence suggests Nazism was a "distortion of normal development" of German history?
Historians like Gerhard Ritter and K. D. Bracher argued that Hitler was striving to break away from the past and introduce something completely new.
D . What evidence suggests Nazism was a bit of both?
As said by Ian Kershaw, "the mentalities... of the elites and the masses which made Hitler's rise possible, were products of strands of German political culture" and "without the unique conditions in which he came to prominence, Hitler would have been nothing... he exploited the conditions brilliantly."
2. How did Hitler consolidate his power?
A. Actions leading up to the March election of 1933
i. Tried to whip up a majority using "all apparatus of state" including press and radio
ii. senior police officers were replaced with reliable nazis and 50,000 auxiliary policemen were called up
iii. meetings of all parties except nazis and nationalists were wrecked and speakers beat up
B. The Reichstag fire
i. what happened?
February 27 PM, Reichstag burned down apparently by a young Dutch anarchist called van der Lubbe (who the SA probably knew about and actually helped to start fires, so they could blame it on the communists)
ii. what did it mean?
That Hitler could use the fire to stir up fear of communism and ban the party. However, the Nazis still did not win enough seats to be the majority, so they were still dependent on the support of the nationalists (led by Papen and Hugenburg)
3. How was Hitler able to stay in power?
A. What was the Enabling Law?
It stated that the gov't could introduce laws without the approval of the Reichstag (laws would be drafted by the chancellor and put into effect the day they were published) for the next 4 years, could ignore the constitution and could sign agreements with foreign countries
B. How did the Enabling Law pass?
Such a major law needed a 2/3 majority, but Hitler surrounded the Reichstag meeting place (The Kroll Opera House) with his SS and SA, chanting "We want the bill, or fire and murder", and when the Catholic Centre Party voted for it... It passed by 441 to 94 votes.
C. What was gleichschaltung?
Hitler's policy of forcible co-ordination which turned germany into a totalitarian or fascist state. the gov't tried to control as many aspects of life as possible, using a huge police force and the Gestapo.
D. What were the characteristics of gleichschaltung?
i. ONE PARTY STATE; All political parties other than National Socialists banned
ii. Separate state parliaments lose all power, most functions taken over by a Nazi Special Commissioner. No more state, provincial, or municipal elections
iii. "The civil service was purged" (Jews and enemies of the state gotten rid of)
iv. Trade unions, a likely source of resistance, were abolished, their funds confiscated and leaders arrested. Replaced by german Labour Front, to which all workers had to belong and no strikes were allowed.
v. Education system closely controlled (distorted textbooks, professors closely monitored). Also, Hitler Youth (broke family bonds, taught children first duty to Hitler)
vi. Bans placed on contraceptives to help Aryan women have children; all "unfit" members of society were forcibly sterilized
vii. All communications and the media were controlled by the Minister of Propaganda (e.g. books considered "un-german" were banned
viii. How was the economic life of the country organized?
a. telling industrials what or what not to produce
b. moving workers to where labor was needed
c. encouraging farmers to increase agricultural yields
d. controlling food prices and rents
e. manipulating foreign exchange rates to avoid inflation
f. introducing vast schemes of public works (slum clearance, land drainage, and motorway building
g. forcing other countries to buy german goods (either refusing to pay cash for imports to germany, or by refusing permission to foreigners w/ german bank accounts to withdraw cash, so they had to spend it on german goods)
h. reduce dependence on foreign countries: manufacture synthetic rubber and wool + experiment to produce petrol from coal
i. increasing expenditure on armaments (1938-9 [in "peacetime"]: military budget was 52% of gov't spending)
ix. How was religion handled? : brought under state control
a. Catholics
1933 Hitler's Concordat with the Pope (would not interfere with church in any way), but then gov't broke that, dissolved catholic youth league, closed catholic schools down, and sent thousands of nuns and priests to concentration camps
b. Protestants
Hitler tried to organize protestant groups into a 'Reich Church'; when pastors protested, they were sent to concentration camps. But they continued to be the only constant quietly resistant group.
x. Above all, germany was a police state (police helped by Gestapo and SS to try and control all opposition to the state and send people to concentration camps etc. However, police were actually understaffed and relied heavily on common people coming forward with information.
xi. Anti-Semitism
a. how was it legalized?
The Nuremberg Laws of 1935 deprived jews of their german citizenship, forbade them to marry non-Jews...
b. examples of the law being carried out
1. Kristallnacht November 1938
2. Hollocaust
3. ?
E. How popular were Hitler's policies?
i. personal appeal - Hitler's use of huge military parades, displays, etc. appealed to the masses because it seemed he was offering action and a great new Germany.
ii. unemployment - Very successful and hence popular: huge public schemes, expanding party and administrative posts, and elimination of Jews etc. holding jobs provided jobs for many germans
iii. working people - the abolition of trade unions was made up for through the benefits from the Strength through Joy Organization: subsidized holidays in germany and abroad, cruises... holidays with pay, control of rents.
iv. upper class - wealthy industrialists and businessmen now felt safe from a communist revolution, were rid of trade unions, and felt promises about profit from public work schemes and rearmament
v. farmers - nazi aim of self-sufficiency in food production -> fixed prices on food assured profit. Also, farms were made hereditary and had to be passed on to next of kin, so farmers could not be forced to pay off debts by having their farms taken away
vi. the Army -
a. officers - liked Hitler because of his much publicized aim of setting aside the restrictions of the versailles Treaty by rearmament and expansion of army to full size
b. lower ranks - steady infiltration of National Socialists
c. Night of Long Knives - impressing to army leaders (how Hitler had "handled" the troublesome SA ["gangsters" led by a homosexual who wanted to be made a general] on June 30, 1934 by having the SS murder them)
vii. foreign policy - (see section 5.3) brilliant success! : breach of versailles, March 1938 Anschluss with Austria (Germany takes over Austria and gains good position for Italy and France, etc.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
IRL #2
Link: http://books.google.com/books?id=ebL637EJW7QC&pg=PA70&lpg=PA70&dq=ideology+examples+hitler+and+stalin/lenin&source=bl&ots=JVDjQUOIJj&sig=Q2oVTyzQpdLo5eJ1AJaknkyCcXE&hl=en&ei=oDS6StKpEdaw8Qan1OiMCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9#v=onepage&q=&f=false
This is a section from a Googlebook called "Political Ideologies: a Comparative Approach" By Mostafa Rejai, "Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Miami University, Ohio" who has written/co-authored many books about history, so I think this can be taken as pretty reliable. It connects to what we're studying in class because it's about the ideologies of totalitarianism, communism, fascism, and nazism, and refers specifically to Nazi Germany, Communist Russia, etc. It enhances our definitions that we made in class of said ideologies by clearly and simply explaining, with some details and examples: the components that comprise each ideology, the organization of authority, and how the ideologies were enforced. A limitation faced when using this source is that much of the information is given in vague or general terms such as "let us return to the two principal features of totalitarianism: ideology and organization"; some of it could be better supported with more specific details and examples to further back up his claims and provide more understanding for readers.
This is a section from a Googlebook called "Political Ideologies: a Comparative Approach" By Mostafa Rejai, "Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Miami University, Ohio" who has written/co-authored many books about history, so I think this can be taken as pretty reliable. It connects to what we're studying in class because it's about the ideologies of totalitarianism, communism, fascism, and nazism, and refers specifically to Nazi Germany, Communist Russia, etc. It enhances our definitions that we made in class of said ideologies by clearly and simply explaining, with some details and examples: the components that comprise each ideology, the organization of authority, and how the ideologies were enforced. A limitation faced when using this source is that much of the information is given in vague or general terms such as "let us return to the two principal features of totalitarianism: ideology and organization"; some of it could be better supported with more specific details and examples to further back up his claims and provide more understanding for readers.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
IRL#1
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/39528.stm
This is an online BBC news article, obviously produced by the British Broadcasting Company, although the reporter/journalist or whoever wrote the article specifically is not listed.
It connects to what we're studying in class because, while this is not current news (the article is from 1997), it gives an example of another nation that became a single-party state, and by studying how Cuba came to that place of being controlled by the Communists, we would be able to farther verify our views on whether or not there is a specific set of circumstances which lead to single-party states (if Cuba shared similar or different circumstances compared to Germany, Russia, and China that led to it becoming a single-party state).
Something that could be considered a limitation for learning about single-party states from this source is that Britain is a capitalist, non-single-party state and therefore could present Cuba's situation and the response of the Communist Cuban government in a negative light, or their BBC "correspondent in Havana" could be sending them information that speaks badly about the actions of the government.
The greatest limitation of using this source is that it does not really, in itself, help to answer our questions about the RISE of single party states, it simply gives us another nation's example, but then I used that to do a little research about the circumstances Cuba was in before becoming a single-party state...
This site is a Wikidot for IB history, which is probably maintained by people like the people who maintain Wikipedia, so... I would want to do more research definitely (perhaps from a few of the sites listed on this page: http://www.casahistoria.net/cuba.htm#Background to Castro´s revolution: ) before I entrusted my life based on this information (especially since there are typos on the page which doesn't speak great things about its professionalism), but for now I'm willing to trust the basic ideas of what it says since they sound pretty familiar and I don't have time right now to go looking up every detail... This "enhances" our learning by providing a new example and details about single party states.
link: http://ibhistory.wikidot.com/the-rise-and-rule-of-single-party-states
Information from site that relates to what we're studying in class:
factors/circumstances in Cuba: (common with Germany, Russia, and China: -foreign influence (USA) -sucky economy -sort of lost war [Cuban missile crisis of 1962]), (unique to Cuba: lack of reliable democratic system)
This is an online BBC news article, obviously produced by the British Broadcasting Company, although the reporter/journalist or whoever wrote the article specifically is not listed.
It connects to what we're studying in class because, while this is not current news (the article is from 1997), it gives an example of another nation that became a single-party state, and by studying how Cuba came to that place of being controlled by the Communists, we would be able to farther verify our views on whether or not there is a specific set of circumstances which lead to single-party states (if Cuba shared similar or different circumstances compared to Germany, Russia, and China that led to it becoming a single-party state).
Something that could be considered a limitation for learning about single-party states from this source is that Britain is a capitalist, non-single-party state and therefore could present Cuba's situation and the response of the Communist Cuban government in a negative light, or their BBC "correspondent in Havana" could be sending them information that speaks badly about the actions of the government.
The greatest limitation of using this source is that it does not really, in itself, help to answer our questions about the RISE of single party states, it simply gives us another nation's example, but then I used that to do a little research about the circumstances Cuba was in before becoming a single-party state...
This site is a Wikidot for IB history, which is probably maintained by people like the people who maintain Wikipedia, so... I would want to do more research definitely (perhaps from a few of the sites listed on this page: http://www.casahistoria.net/cuba.htm#Background to Castro´s revolution: ) before I entrusted my life based on this information (especially since there are typos on the page which doesn't speak great things about its professionalism), but for now I'm willing to trust the basic ideas of what it says since they sound pretty familiar and I don't have time right now to go looking up every detail... This "enhances" our learning by providing a new example and details about single party states.
link: http://ibhistory.wikidot.com/the-rise-and-rule-of-single-party-states
Information from site that relates to what we're studying in class:
factors/circumstances in Cuba: (common with Germany, Russia, and China: -foreign influence (USA) -sucky economy -sort of lost war [Cuban missile crisis of 1962]), (unique to Cuba: lack of reliable democratic system)
Thursday, September 10, 2009
SGQ#3
MWH p. 405-412
1. Revolution and the warlord era
a. Explain the three major crises of this era?
i. Europeans started to force their way into China to take advantage of trading opportunities (i.e. British and the Opium Wars)
ii. Taiping Rebellion (1850-64)
iii. China was defeated in a war with Japan (1894-5) and lost territory (led to Boxer Uprising against foreign influences)
b. What was the immediate cause of the 1911 revolution?
The revolution began among soldiers in Wuchang in October 1911, and most provinces quickly declared themselves independent of Beijing (this led to the govt asking yuan shih-kai to help them, but he ended up taking over and naming himself emperor before losing the army's support and dieing.
c. What were the two important positive developments that took place during the Warlord Era?
i. The May Fourth Movement (1919): anti-warlords, anti-traditional chinese culture, anti-japanese
ii. The Kuomintang or Nationalist Party gradually grew stronger and succeeded in bringing the warlords under control by 1928.
2. The Kuomintang, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, and Chiang Kai-shek
a. What were Sun Yat-sen's three goals for China?
i. nationalism (rid china of foreign influence and build her into a strong, united, respected power
ii. democracy (china shouldn't be ruled by warlords but by people-once educated)
iii. land reform (long-term policy of economic development and redistribution of land to the peasants, but without confiscation of the landlords' property)
b. What three steps did Chiang take to consolidate power?
i. 1926 set out on the Northern March to destroy warlords
ii. 1927 decided communists were becoming too powerful (communists expelled from the KMT and thousands massacred)
iii. ? the Kuomintang govt proved to be a great disappointment to most of the chinese people...
3. Mao Zedong and the Chinese Communist Party
a. How did the Communists survive the extermination campaigns?
Led by Mao Zedong,They took to the mountains and concentrated on building up the red army, then when surrounded by KMT army, they moved base elsewhere and were able to control the provinces of Shensi and Kansu.
b. Why did Mao and the Communists gain support?
i. inefficiency and corruption of the KMT in gov't (only interested in landowners bankers and industrialists, no mass support)
ii. little improvement of factory conditions (widespread bribery of inspectors etc)
iii. no improvement in peasant poverty (high taxes, forced labor), whereas communists offered restricted rents and seized landowners property and gave it to peasants
iv. KMT put up no effective resistance to the japanese, then when japanese started beating KMT, communists presented themselves as nationalists and won support
4. Briefly summarize how the CCP won their struggle with the KMT, and give 2 reasons
Incensed about the japanese invasion, some of his own troops captured him and he was forced to agree to a fresh alliance with the CCP... then when japanese defeated, KMT and CCP locked in power struggle. Despite american help to the KMT, communist army was still really strong and big, and the KMT fell apart under direct attack. CCP took Beijing, then Chiang fled to taiwan and CCP took over with Mao as chairman.
Why: 1. Communists' land policy was popular, and gov't was honest and fair, compared to KMT who printed extra $ and caused inflation...
2. CCP leaders were shrewd enough to take advantage of KMT weaknesses and their armies were carefully prepared and competent.
1. Revolution and the warlord era
a. Explain the three major crises of this era?
i. Europeans started to force their way into China to take advantage of trading opportunities (i.e. British and the Opium Wars)
ii. Taiping Rebellion (1850-64)
iii. China was defeated in a war with Japan (1894-5) and lost territory (led to Boxer Uprising against foreign influences)
b. What was the immediate cause of the 1911 revolution?
The revolution began among soldiers in Wuchang in October 1911, and most provinces quickly declared themselves independent of Beijing (this led to the govt asking yuan shih-kai to help them, but he ended up taking over and naming himself emperor before losing the army's support and dieing.
c. What were the two important positive developments that took place during the Warlord Era?
i. The May Fourth Movement (1919): anti-warlords, anti-traditional chinese culture, anti-japanese
ii. The Kuomintang or Nationalist Party gradually grew stronger and succeeded in bringing the warlords under control by 1928.
2. The Kuomintang, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, and Chiang Kai-shek
a. What were Sun Yat-sen's three goals for China?
i. nationalism (rid china of foreign influence and build her into a strong, united, respected power
ii. democracy (china shouldn't be ruled by warlords but by people-once educated)
iii. land reform (long-term policy of economic development and redistribution of land to the peasants, but without confiscation of the landlords' property)
b. What three steps did Chiang take to consolidate power?
i. 1926 set out on the Northern March to destroy warlords
ii. 1927 decided communists were becoming too powerful (communists expelled from the KMT and thousands massacred)
iii. ? the Kuomintang govt proved to be a great disappointment to most of the chinese people...
3. Mao Zedong and the Chinese Communist Party
a. How did the Communists survive the extermination campaigns?
Led by Mao Zedong,They took to the mountains and concentrated on building up the red army, then when surrounded by KMT army, they moved base elsewhere and were able to control the provinces of Shensi and Kansu.
b. Why did Mao and the Communists gain support?
i. inefficiency and corruption of the KMT in gov't (only interested in landowners bankers and industrialists, no mass support)
ii. little improvement of factory conditions (widespread bribery of inspectors etc)
iii. no improvement in peasant poverty (high taxes, forced labor), whereas communists offered restricted rents and seized landowners property and gave it to peasants
iv. KMT put up no effective resistance to the japanese, then when japanese started beating KMT, communists presented themselves as nationalists and won support
4. Briefly summarize how the CCP won their struggle with the KMT, and give 2 reasons
Incensed about the japanese invasion, some of his own troops captured him and he was forced to agree to a fresh alliance with the CCP... then when japanese defeated, KMT and CCP locked in power struggle. Despite american help to the KMT, communist army was still really strong and big, and the KMT fell apart under direct attack. CCP took Beijing, then Chiang fled to taiwan and CCP took over with Mao as chairman.
Why: 1. Communists' land policy was popular, and gov't was honest and fair, compared to KMT who printed extra $ and caused inflation...
2. CCP leaders were shrewd enough to take advantage of KMT weaknesses and their armies were carefully prepared and competent.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
SGQ#2
QUESTION OF THE WEEK:
To what extent is there a set of circumstances that will predict the rise of a single party state?
RUSSIA: Modern World History p. 339-343
Were the revolutions of 1917 inevitable?
A. Reforms under Nicholas II
1. How was Nicholas able to survive the 1905 revolution?
i. his opponents were not united
ii. there was no central leadership (the whole thing having flared up spontaneously)
iii. He compromised with the October Manifesto, promising concessions
iv. most of the army remained loyal
2. What reforms did Nicholas institute?
i. improvements in industrial working conditions and pay
ii. cancellation of peasants' redemption payments
iii. more freedom for the press
iv. genuine democracy in which the Duma would play an important part in running the country
3. What happened to the Dumas?
The first one was rigged to elect select people, but still imposed reforms too drastic for Nicholas, so he had them dispersed by troops after only 10 weeks. The second suffered the same fate, so Nicholas changed the voting system to deprive peasants and urban workers of the vote. The third and fourth Dumas lasted longer because they had no actual power (Nicholas had control of the secret police and the ministers).
B. Strengths of the regime
1. how did Stolypin gain support of some peasants?
i. Redemption payments abolished
ii. Peasants were encouraged to buy their own land
iii. what is a kulak? a comfortably-off peasant on whom the government could rely for support against revolution (so stolypin hoped)
2. how did the regime gain support among industrial workers?
Factories came under the control of inspectors, improving working conditions, insurance scheme introduced
3. other positive signs for the regime
i. A 1914 program for "universal education within 10 yrs", extra 50,000 primary schools opened
ii. the revolutionary parties seemed to have lost heart (leaders in exile etc.)
C. Weaknesses of the regime
1. why were Stolypin's land reforms failing?
i. Peasant population growing too rapidly
ii. Farming methods too inefficient to support growing populations adequately
2. what was the trend with industrial strikes in the years leading to WWI?
2000 separate strikes in 1912, 2400 in 1913, and over 4000 in the 1st 7 months (more and more, things maybe getting better but not good enough)
3. what three groups did the government especially target for repression?
i. peasants
ii. industrial workers
iii. intelligentsia (educated classes)
4. revolutionary parties - what did each hope for?
i. Bolsheviks - a small disciplined party of professional revolutionaries who would work full-time to bring about a revolution
ii. Mensheviks - stuck with Marxism and a proletarian revolution, industrial workers needed to be in majority over peasants
iii. Social Revolutionaries - a mainly agrarian society based on peasant communities operating collectively (did not approve of increasing industrialization or proletarian revolution)
5. How was the royal family tainted by scandal?
i. Stolypin's death - Nicholas was suspected to have taken part in the murder
ii. Rasputin - his drunkenness and numerous affairs with court ladies and the Duma requested he be sent away from the court
D. World War I
What were considered failures in Russia's effort in WWI?
i. Incompetent and corrupt organization
ii. Shortage of equipment
iii. Poor transport organization and distribution meant arms and ammunition were slow to reach the front.
iv. Trains were monopolized by the military.
v. Nicholas made the fatal mistake of appointing himself supreme commander; his tactical blunders threw away all the advantages won by Brusilov's offensive, and drew on himself the blame for later defeats, and for the high death rate
To what extent is there a set of circumstances that will predict the rise of a single party state?
RUSSIA: Modern World History p. 339-343
Were the revolutions of 1917 inevitable?
A. Reforms under Nicholas II
1. How was Nicholas able to survive the 1905 revolution?
i. his opponents were not united
ii. there was no central leadership (the whole thing having flared up spontaneously)
iii. He compromised with the October Manifesto, promising concessions
iv. most of the army remained loyal
2. What reforms did Nicholas institute?
i. improvements in industrial working conditions and pay
ii. cancellation of peasants' redemption payments
iii. more freedom for the press
iv. genuine democracy in which the Duma would play an important part in running the country
3. What happened to the Dumas?
The first one was rigged to elect select people, but still imposed reforms too drastic for Nicholas, so he had them dispersed by troops after only 10 weeks. The second suffered the same fate, so Nicholas changed the voting system to deprive peasants and urban workers of the vote. The third and fourth Dumas lasted longer because they had no actual power (Nicholas had control of the secret police and the ministers).
B. Strengths of the regime
1. how did Stolypin gain support of some peasants?
i. Redemption payments abolished
ii. Peasants were encouraged to buy their own land
iii. what is a kulak? a comfortably-off peasant on whom the government could rely for support against revolution (so stolypin hoped)
2. how did the regime gain support among industrial workers?
Factories came under the control of inspectors, improving working conditions, insurance scheme introduced
3. other positive signs for the regime
i. A 1914 program for "universal education within 10 yrs", extra 50,000 primary schools opened
ii. the revolutionary parties seemed to have lost heart (leaders in exile etc.)
C. Weaknesses of the regime
1. why were Stolypin's land reforms failing?
i. Peasant population growing too rapidly
ii. Farming methods too inefficient to support growing populations adequately
2. what was the trend with industrial strikes in the years leading to WWI?
2000 separate strikes in 1912, 2400 in 1913, and over 4000 in the 1st 7 months (more and more, things maybe getting better but not good enough)
3. what three groups did the government especially target for repression?
i. peasants
ii. industrial workers
iii. intelligentsia (educated classes)
4. revolutionary parties - what did each hope for?
i. Bolsheviks - a small disciplined party of professional revolutionaries who would work full-time to bring about a revolution
ii. Mensheviks - stuck with Marxism and a proletarian revolution, industrial workers needed to be in majority over peasants
iii. Social Revolutionaries - a mainly agrarian society based on peasant communities operating collectively (did not approve of increasing industrialization or proletarian revolution)
5. How was the royal family tainted by scandal?
i. Stolypin's death - Nicholas was suspected to have taken part in the murder
ii. Rasputin - his drunkenness and numerous affairs with court ladies and the Duma requested he be sent away from the court
D. World War I
What were considered failures in Russia's effort in WWI?
i. Incompetent and corrupt organization
ii. Shortage of equipment
iii. Poor transport organization and distribution meant arms and ammunition were slow to reach the front.
iv. Trains were monopolized by the military.
v. Nicholas made the fatal mistake of appointing himself supreme commander; his tactical blunders threw away all the advantages won by Brusilov's offensive, and drew on himself the blame for later defeats, and for the high death rate
Thursday, September 3, 2009
SGQ #1
QUESTION OF THE WEEK:
To what extent is there a set of circumstances that will predict the rise of a single party state?
GERMANY: Modern World History p. 301-309
Why did the Weimar Republic fail?
A. Disadvantages
1. why was Versailles "humiliating" and "unpopular"?
i. treaty's acceptance of arms limitations, reparations, and war guilt clause
ii. always associated with defeat and dishonor
iii. German nationalists hated this
2. who did people generally believe should run the country?
i. the army and the "officer class"
were the German people justified in the view? why/why not?
ii. no because they didn't realize it was General Ludendorff who has asked for an armistice while the Kaiser was in power
3. what weaknesses existed in the Weimar parliamentary system?
i. it was based on a system of proportional representation, but there were so many different groups that no party could ever win an overall majority
ii. a succession of coalition governments was inevitable; no party was able to carry out its program
4. why did the political parties have no experience?
i. before 1919, it had really been the Chancellor with all the authority
how did the political parties deal with their bitter rivalries?
ii. by organizing their own private armies, which led to more threat of civil war, outbreaks of violence, and attempts to overthrow the republic
B. Outbreaks of Violence
1. Sparticists
i. who was behind it?
The communists, led by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg
ii. how bad was it?
kind of bad, considering the communists were in every major city, President Ebert was beseiged in the chancellory in Berlin, the government had to ask for the help of anti-communist ex-army officers (Freikorps) and it ended in the 2 communist leaders being clubbed to death
iii. how was it defeated?
The Freikorps helped the govt fight off the communists
2. Kapp Putsch
i. who was behind it?
the Freikorps, who refused the govt's order to disband and declared Dr Wolfgang Kapp as Chancellor
ii. how bad was it?
maybe not so bloody, but the german army refused to do anything because the generals were in agreement with Freikorps, and then after the strike of the Berlin workers which froze the capital, the government still ended up really weak
iii. how was it defeated?
The strike of berlin workers forced Kapp to resign and the gov't regained control, but it was really weak and could barely disband the Freikorps
3. assassinations
i. who was behind it?
Mainly ex-Freikorps members (victims: the Jewish foreign minister and the leader of the armistice delegation)
ii. how bad was it?
Not bad in one respect because the government was not allowed to punish the criminals severely because of right-wing resistance, so there wasn't horrible violence or anything. But it was bad for the government!!
4. Beer Hall Putsch
i. who was behind it?
Hitler, helped by General Ludendorff
ii. how bad was it?
easily broken up, so not so bad
iii. how was it defeated?
The police easily broke up Hitler's march ("national revolution") from Munich to overthrow the gov't in Berlin. Hitler was sentenced to 5 yrs in jail but only served 9 months because Bavarian authorities "has some sympathy with his aims"
5. private armies expand
i. who was behind it?
Every party, especially the Nazis and communists who had regular street fights
ii. how bad was it?
No major battles, only minor fights, but really decreased people's confidence in government; they wanted to return to a strong, authoritarian govt which would maintain strict public order
iii. how was it defeated?
All parties had their meetings broken up by rival armies, but the police seemed powerless to prevent it happening (it wasn't really defeated)
C. Economic problems
1. why was Germany facing bankruptcy?
The enormous expense of the war, which had lasted much longer than most people expected.
2. what was the problem with the reparations payments?
Germany didn't have the money... in 1921 they payed the 50mill due, then requested permission to suspend payments till her economy recovered, but france refused
3. how did France attempt to deal with the reparations issue?
Since germany couldn't make her annual payments, France occupied the Ruhr in an attempt to seize goods from factories and mines. -> German workers stop working, so Ruhr is paralyzed and value of mark falls
E. Nazi popularity
1. how did the Nazis propose to fulfill their promises?
i. by ridding Germany of all the people who were the "real problem" (Marxists, Jews, etc)
ii. They promised to overthrow the Versailles settlement and then bring all Germans into the Reich
2. i.What was the SA?
"Storm Troopers", the Nazi private army
ii. Why was the SA so popular?
Because it gave a small wage and a uniform to jobless people
3. Where did the fear of communism come from?
Wealthy landowners and industrialists (capitalists)
4. What were Hitler's political abilities?
i. energy
ii. willpower
iii. gift for public speaking
iv. use of latest modern communication techniques (mass rallies, parades, film, radio, travelling all over Germany in a plane)
5. What kinds of people supported the Nazis?
Working class, lower middle classes (office-workers, shop-keepers, civil servants, teachers and small-scale farmers)
To what extent is there a set of circumstances that will predict the rise of a single party state?
GERMANY: Modern World History p. 301-309
Why did the Weimar Republic fail?
A. Disadvantages
1. why was Versailles "humiliating" and "unpopular"?
i. treaty's acceptance of arms limitations, reparations, and war guilt clause
ii. always associated with defeat and dishonor
iii. German nationalists hated this
2. who did people generally believe should run the country?
i. the army and the "officer class"
were the German people justified in the view? why/why not?
ii. no because they didn't realize it was General Ludendorff who has asked for an armistice while the Kaiser was in power
3. what weaknesses existed in the Weimar parliamentary system?
i. it was based on a system of proportional representation, but there were so many different groups that no party could ever win an overall majority
ii. a succession of coalition governments was inevitable; no party was able to carry out its program
4. why did the political parties have no experience?
i. before 1919, it had really been the Chancellor with all the authority
how did the political parties deal with their bitter rivalries?
ii. by organizing their own private armies, which led to more threat of civil war, outbreaks of violence, and attempts to overthrow the republic
B. Outbreaks of Violence
1. Sparticists
i. who was behind it?
The communists, led by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg
ii. how bad was it?
kind of bad, considering the communists were in every major city, President Ebert was beseiged in the chancellory in Berlin, the government had to ask for the help of anti-communist ex-army officers (Freikorps) and it ended in the 2 communist leaders being clubbed to death
iii. how was it defeated?
The Freikorps helped the govt fight off the communists
2. Kapp Putsch
i. who was behind it?
the Freikorps, who refused the govt's order to disband and declared Dr Wolfgang Kapp as Chancellor
ii. how bad was it?
maybe not so bloody, but the german army refused to do anything because the generals were in agreement with Freikorps, and then after the strike of the Berlin workers which froze the capital, the government still ended up really weak
iii. how was it defeated?
The strike of berlin workers forced Kapp to resign and the gov't regained control, but it was really weak and could barely disband the Freikorps
3. assassinations
i. who was behind it?
Mainly ex-Freikorps members (victims: the Jewish foreign minister and the leader of the armistice delegation)
ii. how bad was it?
Not bad in one respect because the government was not allowed to punish the criminals severely because of right-wing resistance, so there wasn't horrible violence or anything. But it was bad for the government!!
4. Beer Hall Putsch
i. who was behind it?
Hitler, helped by General Ludendorff
ii. how bad was it?
easily broken up, so not so bad
iii. how was it defeated?
The police easily broke up Hitler's march ("national revolution") from Munich to overthrow the gov't in Berlin. Hitler was sentenced to 5 yrs in jail but only served 9 months because Bavarian authorities "has some sympathy with his aims"
5. private armies expand
i. who was behind it?
Every party, especially the Nazis and communists who had regular street fights
ii. how bad was it?
No major battles, only minor fights, but really decreased people's confidence in government; they wanted to return to a strong, authoritarian govt which would maintain strict public order
iii. how was it defeated?
All parties had their meetings broken up by rival armies, but the police seemed powerless to prevent it happening (it wasn't really defeated)
C. Economic problems
1. why was Germany facing bankruptcy?
The enormous expense of the war, which had lasted much longer than most people expected.
2. what was the problem with the reparations payments?
Germany didn't have the money... in 1921 they payed the 50mill due, then requested permission to suspend payments till her economy recovered, but france refused
3. how did France attempt to deal with the reparations issue?
Since germany couldn't make her annual payments, France occupied the Ruhr in an attempt to seize goods from factories and mines. -> German workers stop working, so Ruhr is paralyzed and value of mark falls
E. Nazi popularity
1. how did the Nazis propose to fulfill their promises?
i. by ridding Germany of all the people who were the "real problem" (Marxists, Jews, etc)
ii. They promised to overthrow the Versailles settlement and then bring all Germans into the Reich
2. i.What was the SA?
"Storm Troopers", the Nazi private army
ii. Why was the SA so popular?
Because it gave a small wage and a uniform to jobless people
3. Where did the fear of communism come from?
Wealthy landowners and industrialists (capitalists)
4. What were Hitler's political abilities?
i. energy
ii. willpower
iii. gift for public speaking
iv. use of latest modern communication techniques (mass rallies, parades, film, radio, travelling all over Germany in a plane)
5. What kinds of people supported the Nazis?
Working class, lower middle classes (office-workers, shop-keepers, civil servants, teachers and small-scale farmers)
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