This source shows children who are very thin and malnourished. It shows that they did not have much food and had to eat probably a meal a day. It also shows that their food was not healthy and nutritional. It was due to the great famine that was caused by Stalins actions. It took the lives of as many as 10 million people. I chose this source to show the depth of Stalins capability as he caused the death of 10 million people. Thus, Stalin was not a saviour of the USSR.
During Stalins rule, he made it compulsory for every child to 9 years of free education. They learned the virtues of the Communist Party. College professors and students who questioned the Communist Party's interpretations of history or science risked losing their jobs or faced imprisonment. Some professors who refused to teach propaganda to students, were punished by the soldiers and were even killed. It shows how Stalin was focused on making a good reputation and cultivating communist-minded children instead of educating the children. Thus, he was not a Savior of the USSR.
This source shows the poor living conditions of the citizens. Many people are seen to be cramped in tiny houses and building which has poor facilities. It has poor ventilation, unhygienic and cramped. This shows that the living conditions of the citizens were bad during the Tzar period but were made worse during Stalins rule. I chose this source as it was helpful in showing how much the citizens suffered. It shows how the citizens living conditions were not of Stalins priority and how he was not a Savior of the USSR.
This source focuses on Stalin's insecurity with his rivals. Stalin was worried about his political rivals getting the upper hand and make the nation against him. Thus, he had various methods such as Show Trials, whereby trials are made public and the fate of the person trialled had already been decidedly condemned, to instil a sense of fear and respect, showing how all opposition was not to be dealt with lightly. His political rivals such as Kamenev, Zinoviev and Bukharin, who was the one being trialled in this video were made forcibly to sign false confessions under the threat of the security of their families or after gruesome torture, and were all executed ultimately. Thus, it shows how insecure Stalin was with his political rivals and that he was concerned with his political rivals than other issues and thus was not a Saviour of the USSR.
The title of the poster in the source is "Stalin's Kindness Enlightens the Future of Our Children!". It shows Stalin is carrying a happy child who is waving the flag of Soviet Russia with one hand, and carrying flowers in the other, which is presumably for Stalin. This propaganda poster shows Stalin's characteristics as a gentleman and caring with children and people. This is to create propaganda among the citizens that Stalin is kind and not evil and how he treats everyone nice and with due respect. It contradicts his characteristics of evilness and instead glorifies himself as a friend to the nation. I chose this source as it was a very powerful mode of propaganda.
This cartoon shows that The Great Purge or the Great Terror coincided with the forced collectivization. These two events raked up the death toll to many tens of millions. There was an instruction given by Stalin to kill or capture all criminals or anti-Soviet activists. This order was carried out by Stalin's dogs, the NKVD. Stalin later added to the order that all families of these people could be captured or killed by association. I chose this source as it was evident to how Stalins did not care about others lives. This hence shows that stalins rule was not benefical to the USSR.
In conclusion, Stalin was not a saviour of USSR, he was instead one who had caused millions of death under his rule. During Stalin's rule, many innocent lives were killed. He was also a fan or propaganda and used it in his favour. Thus, I can conclude that Stalin was not a saviour of USSR.