Stalin: The Man of Steel

The Teenage Stalin

                                           

3/5/1953 The Death Of Stalin

Joseph Stalin and Adolf Hitler

Russian Propaganda

                                                               

 Lenin and Stalin

                                                           

7/5/11

It is the final weekend before the due date. I don't quite know how to feel. I am relieved and yet also very stressed. As for my blog, I think it proved to be an excellent form of reflection and if my posts had gone through the first time, I may have actually enjoyed using it.

Now, all that's left to do is edit the essay and study for my other exams. I am sure that the end of this first senior exam block will be ethereal.

Lost Posts: 4/5/11

I have almost completed the assessment, with only a conclusion and and editing to go. The relief I feel is immense and although I enjoyed the topic, I am glad to see it come to an end.

Lost Posts: 2/5/11

I have only written around two and a half pages but I feel relieved as it was ostensibly easier than I first thought. Having read up on Stalin, created valid notes and watched numerous documentaries has really assisted me in the entire process; the information seems to simply come to me.

Lost Posts: 30/4/11

My leisurely week and a half off has proven to be quite useful in the sense that I have a clear and slightly distracted mind. I am now able to concentrate better and have yet again gained interest in both Stalin and his impact upon Russia. I also fear this has put me slightly behind schedule and so I have made an attempt to try and catch up.

Lost Posts: 21/4/11

I have become genuinely lazy. Having over worked myself with the multiple assignments and what not has burnt me out. I haven't sat down to work on anything related to Stalin in a little over a week but instead have been taking the time to relax and get out of the house. I am hoping this will do me some good.

Lost Posts: 11/4/11

The more and more I lean about Stalin, the more I seem to enjoy it. I am very glad I chose this particular topic as enjoying it makes it much easier to work with. In order to progress with this assessment I have set aside time each night to read up on Stalin and make more notes.

6/4/11 Post which did not go through:

Although the library is meant to be quite peaceful and tranquil I do find it increasingly difficult to concentrate solely on my own topic. I am constantly distracted by others who continually banter and ask me questions. Because of this I am left no choice but to work at home during the only leisure time I have. As of recently my work load has not been lifted but in fact made impossibly heavier. I find myself working on school work until late at night and left with very little time. I feel rather frustrated by my lack of time and as if I am not completing my work to the best of my ability.

Lost Posts found

Thankfully, after some researching and fiddling with the dashboard I found a few of the lost posts. However, when I select it and click "Publish Post" it says "Post Published" yet when I go to my blog, nothing shows up. It seems the only way to fix this issue may be to simply copy and paste it as a new post and hope it works. This is a negative thing as it will be out of order and seem rather unfitting.

Post Did Not Go Through

As of a little while ago, I published around four to six posts. And today, I have discovered to my astonishment that they have not gone through. The blog says they have although they do not show up. This is proving to be quite irritating as I do not know how to retrieve them and republish them.

A Change of Heart

The double was quite a productive lesson for me. I am finding Joseph Stalin and his legacy extremely interesting although, in contrast, I am finding it difficult to find a satisfactory level of information on the affects of Stalin on the Soviet Union as I have found that the main affect of Stalin was the infliction of terror on Russian's and the execution of mostly innocent people. As a result of this I have had a change of heart and have had to alter my proposal. My previous proposal was "assess the affects of Joseph Stalin on the Soviet Union" and has been changed to "To what extent was Joseph Stalin responsible for the industrialisation of the Soviet Union and what was the legacy of his program?" This proposal provides me with an opportunity to talk about more than Joseph Stalin.

As of today, I have come close to completing notes on the Soviet Union before Stalin, Joseph Stalin's background and on a few of the processes he undertook in order to industrialise. I also continued my reading and found some helpful newspaper articles that were written at the time relative events took place. The articles depict the type of world in which people lived in, how Stalin gained and maintained control over Russia and how the people at the time behaved. It also reflects on Stalin's influence on not only Russia but also the world, which proves to be very helpful as it relates to my question/proposal.

Today, I continued my reading on Joseph Stalin and his influence on the Soviet Union. The books I have read are from the school library and are proving very useful in my research. I have not felt the need to use the Internet since I began reading the books as they provide me with all the information I need. I have also decided to work on my bibliography as I go as a means of making it easier to find my sources.

Books I've read so far:
1- Murray, J. 1996. Russia & THE USSR 1905-1941. London: Terry Fiehn.
2- Bucklow, M and Russell, G. 1991. Russia: Why Revolution? Australia: Longman Chesire.
3-Proctor, H. 1995. Ruling Russia - From Nicholas II to Stalin. Australia: Longman.
4- Ingram, P. 1997. RUSSIA AND THE USSR 1905 - 1991. Australia: Cambridge University Press.

The four of these book provide plentiful amounts of background information on Stalin and the Soviet Union as well as going into depth about the consequences, successes and the reasons for Stalin's actions.