Communism is one of the three "flavors" of totalitarianism we talk about in class. It is the most widespread and, in a certain sense, most "successful" flavor of totalitarianism--and probably the most important for you to understand.
For many years, I showed in class a video called "Harvest of Despair" an excellent film on "Holodomor," the Ukrainian famine. I haven't had time for this in recent years, but I'd very much like you to see the video.
You can watch this online version of The Harvest of Despair. There is a better quality DVD version in the NSU library. A group of you might want to check the DVD out and watch it together.
A very good alternative is to watch the "Great War" episode on Holodomor.
I'll give you extra credit for your response to the prompt here:
Which Holodomor video did you watch? What did the video teach you about Soviet Communism that you didn't know before? What insights did you gain on the motivations and methods of those who supported the movement? Did anything here help you understand why this particular flavor of totalitarianism survived longer (and did more damage) than other totalitarian systems?
The "Great War" episode on Holodomor
ReplyDelete- Knowing where the countless victims were could get you killed. Which is what happened to the entire staff of the Lukianivske Cemetery in Kiev.
- The Soviets went along with the Stalin's 5 year plan, and the rest of his movements.
- The five year plan was meant to increase exports to get more hard currencies. Concerning the risk of the American saturation of the grain market. Which then lead Stalin to write FM Vyacheslav Molotov in July 1930.
Treyton Cacek
The "Great War" episode on Holodomor
ReplyDelete- They went to extreme lengths to cover up what was actually happening, making sure no one knew of their actions.
- Those who supported Stalin mainly thought that the people they were doing this too were a big threat, so they were thinking it was for a good cause.
- I feel like this government lasted longer than other similar governments because they made it look like they were forced to do it, because the "enemy" did something to them first. Stalin also made sure no one knew what he was doing, covering up his tracks.
- Jameson Palmer
I watched the great war episode on Holodomor. It taught me a little bit about the Soviet Union, but we covered this information in high school, so it was not that surprising to me. I think that Stalin tried to convince people that the Ukranian people were a threat and used the famine to eliminate opposition. I think that the reason the Soviet system was so successful was the total power and fear that Stalin ruled with. I think that the Soviet government did a good job of brainwashing and hiding their actions from people.
ReplyDeleteI chose to watch the Great War episode on Holodomor. This episode taught me how Joseph Stalin believed these people were a threat to renewed nationalist dissent in Ukraine. Being aware of the whereabouts of the countless victims could prove fatal, which is what happened to every employee at Kiev's Lukianivska Cemetery. The Soviet Union supported Stalin's five-year plan as well as his other initiatives. They took great care to conceal what was truly going on and ensure that no one was aware of what they were doing. If you even knew where the mass graves were located, you would be killed because Stalin was just trying to cover up his tracks. Those who backed Stalin mostly believed that the people they were aiding posed a serious threat, thus they reasoned that their actions were justified.
ReplyDeleteI had a very good history teacher in high school that actually taught us a lot about this time period and it has stuck pretty good so nothing was "shocking" to hear in this video. I think the video did a good job of helping someone understand why the flavor of totalitarianism survived longerthan other totalitarian systems but you would need to watch the whole thing through.
-Allie Neu
I watched the Great War episode. This episode taught things about Joseph Stalin and the Soviet Union. I also learned that many people thought what Stalin was doing at the time was good and that it was for a good cause against bad people. know one really knew what he was doing because he did a good job on covering his tracks. I think total power played a big part for some of the success of the Soviet Union.
ReplyDeleteI watched the "Great War" episode on Holodomor. I think any sort of deliberate harm to any one group of people like this is inspired by a potential threat to a government, and this video supported this. Stalin had a solid support system in his people and they trusted that what he was doing was in their best interest. With Communism, people are conditioned to believe that what their country does is "right," and if not, there are extreme measures taken by the government. With this, there's not a lot of confrontation that is or can be made by those inside. This is a likely reason as to why it lasts so long.
ReplyDeleteEmmahLeigh Cass
I watched the "Great War" episode on Holodomor. I didn't know much about Holodomor before this, so it was very interesting to learn. The starvation of the people was from a man-made famine and was a deliberate act by Joseph Stalin to use the dire situation of these people to get rid of them as a threat. Even hiding grain for yourself was made a capital crime. The people who supported the movement were following along with Joseph Stalin and the government's ideas and believed that these people were a threat they had to get rid of. This totalitarian system gave the government leaders full control. With this control, they are better able to do what they want, when they want. It can survive longer and cause more damage because it is hard for any government change to occur when the people have no control in any decisions.
ReplyDelete- Abby Hinman
I watched The Great War Episode on Holodomor
ReplyDelete-Stalin deliberately made a famine in his country
-The Gov't convinced many to get rid of those who "threatened" Stalin's ideas and the totalitarian system.
-Because the system gave leaders complete control the system lasted longer and caused much more damage, the people had no control in the decisions of the country
-Harvest of Despair
ReplyDelete-In high school I learned that Russian Communism was an awful thing but until I watched this, I had no idea. The horrors of famine were just eerie to look at. I didn't know it was a self-imposed famine.
-Many people who supported it were in fear, and many had no other choice. He was afraid of Ukraine branching off again. So, he arrested thousands and had them killed or deported.
-The government made the leaders of the country more powerful than it intended. Therefore, too much power in the wrong hands for too long will run you into the ground.
Harvest of Despair:
ReplyDelete- From the video, I learned, much to my horror, the magnitude of the cruelty and torture the people of Ukraine were subjected to by Stalin and the Soviets.
- Something that haunts me from this video was the part where they revealed how much was "swept under the rug", or just blatantly lied about in the press. I think it's possible people supported the Soviet movement and the 5-year plan because they simply had no clue what was actually happening in Ukraine. And perhaps even if they did know, it was better to have other people suffer and starve than them. Especially people whom they viewed as a threat.
- It was said that Western countries were aware of the famine but remained passive and did nothing to put a stop to it. It would appear that this kind of totalitarianism lasted as long as it did because perhaps people were too afraid to stand up to Stalin. His ruthlessness was obvious, and surely very intimidating.
Harvest of Despair
ReplyDeleteThe video reveals how the Soviet government tried to cover up the tragedy, denying the famine even happened and refusing to send aid. It’s a devastating look at how political decisions can have catastrophic consequences for ordinary people. "Harvest of Despair" reminds us of the power of history to shape our world and why it’s so important to remember these events, so they’re never repeated. The film is emotional, thought-provoking, and a crucial part of understanding the human cost of political regimes and their policies.
- I watched “Harvest of Despair”.
ReplyDelete- I learned a little bit about this in my history class during high school. But I didn’t realize how bad it was and seeing the images made my stomach turn. I think that this is important to know and that everyone should know just how bad Stalin was. He was a monster and didn’t care even about his own people.
- I like that during the video there are people who were actually there and saw this all happen in front of them. I felt a lot of emotion for the people who were the victims and had everything taken away from them. It’s insane to me how Stalin killed so many of his own people. No one should have to go through this, and everyone deserves to have food to eat.
- The people who were in the government were given orders to kill anyone who was trying to eat grain. They were just doing what Stalin was telling them, but I feel like they would understand what they were doing was wrong. It is important that this never happens again, because no one should have to go through any of this.
The great episode on Holodomor
ReplyDeleteThis revolves around Joseph Stalin. Stalin had a five-year plan to organize his government, which I found cool. The Soviets went to cover up what happened in the first war. The staff were rounded up and shot. The events have been researched a lot. Joseph did what he could to get rid of threats. Stalin did not issue the order to starve Ukrainians to death. Hiding grain would be known as a capital crime. I never knew this. There was a book called Red Famine about Joseph Stalin. Soviet farms grew enough food for the ones. These farms would be connected to larger farms. The new policy was eliminated once Stalin came into power. Resistance grew against the government. It's horrible what they did to the live stocks, and riots broke out. Overall, Joseph Stalin had millions killed, and it is a tragedy.
- I watched The Great War
ReplyDelete- In high school I was not taught very much about communism. One thing I learned was that they would go to extreme lengths to cover up what had happened, Like the staff of the Lukianivski Cemetery in Kiev who were all killed because they knew where the victims bodies were buried but the "reason" they were killed was treason.