Synopsis
Stalin has been vilified and adored. It is difficult to think of many other historical figures who have attracted such an extreme polarity of opinion. In part of course this is because he became a potent symbol in the 20th-century's major ideological struggle - between "capitalism" and "socialism". It is unsurprising that it has been difficult for most observers, including most historians, to be neutral. Only now, in the wake of the collapse of the Stalinist system and the end of the Cold War, is it possible to begin dispassionate evaluation. This study sees Stalin, in fact, as something of a cipher: infinitely more potent as an "idea" than he ever was as an individual. The result is a cultural and intellectual history, which examines how Stalin was "created", mythologized and demonized.
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Présentation de l'éditeur
The figure of Joseph Stalin has always provoked heated and often polarized debate. The recent declassification of a substantial portion of Stalin's archive has made possible this fundamental new assessment of the Soviet leader. In this groundbreaking 2005 study, leading international experts challenge many assumptions about Stalin from his early life in Georgia to the Cold War years with contributions ranging across the political, economic, social, cultural, ideological and international history of the Stalin era. The volume provides a deeper understanding of the nature of Stalin's power and of the role of ideas in his politics, presenting a more complex and nuanced image of one of the most important leaders of the twentieth century. This study is without precedent in the field of Russian history and will prove invaluable reading for students of Stalin and Stalinism.
Revue de presse
"Editors Sarah Davies and James Harris have done students of twentieth-century Russian history a real service by compiling these essays."
-Robert Himmer, The Russian Review
"With this outstanding collection, Davies and Harris not only present a more compelling and comprehensive individual but greatly advance our understanding the Soviet state under Stalin."
Golfo Alexopoulos, American Historical Review
"the book will be of interest and value for students of Russian history." -The NYMAS Review
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