Joseph Stalin (1878 – 1953) and Mao Zedong (1893 – 1976) were both notable communist figures in the history of Communism. These two figures shared similar aspects in their general world view, but certain aspects also differentiated them from each other. In order to compare and contrast these two communists, it is important to understand both world views individually.
Joseph Stalin’s World View
Stalin was a communist leader who greatly deviated from Marx’s original idea of Communism. Unlike other notable communists such as Lenin and Marx, Stalin did not believe in the international revolution. He was also a realist leader who made decisions with the intent of protecting the Soviet Union and himself.
Communist
Stalin was a communist, but he betrayed many of Communism’s goals and notions. He removed Lenin’s New Economic Policy and replaced it with his Five-Year Plan which resulted in a huge famine that cost at least ten million lives (Wood, Week 7, Slide 6). The goal of this Five-Year Plan was to industrialize Russia as quickly as possible which included collectivization of Soviet agriculture (Wood, Week 7, Slide 5). Stalin implanted a system where hierarchy existed when, in Communism, everyone is equal, therefore a hierarchy should not exist by definition.
Nationalist
Joseph Stalin was a communist leader who, unlike other communists, did not believe in the international revolution. He believed in the concept of “Socialism in one country” which contradicts the whole notion of having socialism on a global scale (Wood, Week 7, Slide 7). He was obsessed about the Soviet Union and not the world itself. Every decision he made had an ulterior motive to protect the Soviet Union.
Realist
Stalin was a realist because he was obsessed with power and security. He would do anything to protect the Soviet Union and himself. In fact, the purpose of the Great Terror was to eliminate any possible threat of the Soviet Union, Stalin’s regime, and Stalin himself (Wood, Week 7, Slide 7). The Great Terror caused millions of deaths which included innocent civilians, communists in Russia, party members, military officials, industrial leaders, and government officials (Wood, Week 7, Slide 7). He also permitted the use of physical pressure against suspected enemies, but innocent people and enemies were both subjected to this form of torture (Kuromiya, 712). This shows that Stalin, as a leader, was not looking out for his citizens. He was trying to create a perfect communist Soviet Union. If he had to sacrifice millions of innocent people in order to fulfill his vision of a perfect communist Soviet Union, he would do it. Stalin was a realist due to the fact that “[h]e was reticent in the extreme to maintain written records of his decisions, and he probably destroyed, as did Beria later on, critical documents about his rule” (Naimark, 6). He also never explicitly explained his plans to his closest associates (Kuromiya, 712) which shows that he was a leader who strictly protected his plans from both allies and enemies. By using his realism, his motive was to eventually destroy the bourgeoisie (Wood, Week 7, Slide 23) even if it meant going against norms and ideas in Communism at times.
Mao Zedong’s World View
Mao was a communist leader who tried to follow Marx’s original idea of Communism, but he changed certain aspects of that idea to fit China’s situation during his regime. He was also an international revolutionist who believed that the communist revolution should not remain within one’s nation but spread across the globe.
Communist
Mao Zedong committed to Marxism by 1921, and he changed Marxism to fit China’s situation (Wood, Week 8, Slide 18). He believed that China was a proletarian nation instead of Marx’s idea of a “proletarian class” (Wood, Week 8, Slide 18). He aims to destroy democracy by improving government programs (Wood, Week 8, Slide 22). Although he was a communist, he brought the Chinese people down a path that diverges from their communist goals. Popular democracy was never implanted because corrupt individuals were entrenched, and the inequality gap grew wider between the city and the countryside which created a form of hierarchy (Friedman, 149). During his regime, he also created a huge famine which caused over twenty million innocent lives because of his “Great Leap Forward” (Friedman, 148).
Internationalist Revolutionist
Mao believed that the Chinese revolution was part of a global proletarian revolution against imperialism (Wood, Week 8, Slide 4) and he worked to keep China as a revolutionary state (Wood, Week 8, Slide 22). Mao’s attempt to continue the revolution can be comprehended as fulfilling the revolutionary project (Friedman, 148-149). It can also be comprehended as moving closer toward communist goals and fulfilling the “historical dream of the Chinese nation for both a secure and dignified place in the world, and for an advanced prosperity that permits a humane level of existence (Friedman 148-149). This shows that Mao was determined to see the success of this revolution. He was trying to fulfill communist goals by keeping the revolution alive.
Compare & Contrast
Mao Zedong and Joseph Stalin are both communists, but they were not quite the same. Both figures had a cult of personality. They both also had an economic plan that caused major famines. They believed in rapid industrialization, but, due to the short time frame of completing their plans, it caused millions of deaths. Stalin and Mao also purged many party members who did not believe in their regime which also contributed to the number of deaths. They both also believed in hierarchy since they only allowed a small part of the population to govern the entire population. They both had the same intentions of creating a perfect communist world where they are free from enemies. They both desired to destroy the bourgeoisie in order to help the proletariat grow and overcome imperialism.
They both shared a certain form of realism, but Mao was far less intense. Stalin did anything to protect the Soviet Union and himself even if it meant to go against Communism while Mao would not go to that extent. Stalin was a nationalist. He only believed in socialism in one country and not on a global scale while Mao believed that the Chinese revolution was part of a global revolution. Both Stalin and Mao followed different paths in Communism. While Stalin deviated from the original ideas of Marx, Mao tried to follow Marx as much as possible. Stalin ignored the notion of equality by establishing a cult of personality and a hierarchy within the nation. He became “anti-communist” at certain times while still having the intention of overthrowing the bourgeoisie in the name of the revolution. Mao, on the other hand, also had a cult of personality and a hierarchy within the nation, but he stayed true to his communist values and the values of Marx and Lenin. Mao was loyal to Communism while Stalin was unpredictable in this context.
Conclusion
While Stalin and Mao are both communists by nature, they share different sub-aspects. Stalin was a communist, nationalist, and a realist while Mao was a communist and an internationalist revolutionist. Their world views are important because they show what different experiences and situations urged these two figures to become the communist leaders they became. Without those experiences, Stalin and Mao could have become two completely different individuals who might have not been involved with communism.