Propaganda, poison… and pants filled with tomatoes: the crazy happenings at Stalin’s dinner parties

 

                                                                Me vs Stalin dining

A man fond of overconsumption of expensive food and alcohol, Stalin was known for his memorable (and rather shocking) feasts which did more than just entertain; an abundance of food in opulent surroundings was a display of decadence, power and authority- proving to act as a valuable means of demonstrating his political influence. This would be further exemplified through his playing of propaganda films (these having been accessed from Goebbels’ library) to enlighten and entertain the guests.

Traditional and simple Eastern European dishes but made in excessive quantities and using high value ingredients rarely accessible to the masses were eaten. These included a variety of cold appetisers (known as zakuski)  consisting of caviar, cold salmon, and pickled meats and vegetables, to be followed by rich meat stews (notably one made from a two week old young lamb), suckling pigs, roasted geese, grouse and turkeys, and various side dishes such as porcini mushrooms in soured cream and asparagus mousseline. A array of desserts followed. Strategically positioned amidst these would have been multiple bottles of various forms of alcohol (various semi-sweet medium-dry Georgian wines including Khvanchkara and Kindzmarauli he favoured, Starka, vodkas and cognac). These made for a very un-proletarian banquet scene.

The drinking was what took centre stage and made the dinner parties what they were with many cruel games and tricks being played on the attendees (especially those who were already too drunk). To exclude oneself from these alcoholic activities was something met with as much anger as declaring oneself a Trotskyist. However, ironic though it seems, Stalin had a very low tolerance of alcohol considering his various health issues, height and lifestyle. He also appeared to find social events, particularly those that had political and ideological dimension, stressful and relied on alcohol to, as put by Mark Schrad in his book Vodka Politics, “keep his inner circle in balance” as well as perhaps increase his intimidating influence and make him look stronger. We can thus effectively reflect on the resemblance of Stalin to the typical caricature of a Russian man drinking vodka; with the Russian people during the Soviet era struggling greatly with alcoholism (consuming on average 8 gallons per person per year of pure alcohol, compared with the US average of 4 gallons per person per year) has a means of escape from concerns financially and socially, and finding pleasure in a bleak life full of constant fear of persecution. The alcohol that many Russians would have consumed during this period would have been fairly cheap to access, and often produced economically at home. This was during the major appropriation of farmland and grain production that took place in the 1920s after Stalin’s mass appropriation of agriculture leading to the starvation of millions of people. As a result of purely Stalin’s dinner parties, in fact, several of his fellow dictators including Khruschev and Beria also became alcoholics.

These parties were said to offer “clandestine means of coaxing of those in the dictator’s inner circle to reveal themselves and others” such as through repeated toasts praising the dictator in rapid succession of shots of vodka, in which failing to finish one’s shot would lead to punishment by forcing more alcohol on them. This gave him a lot of pleasure. Another of these games that Stalin enjoyed featured participants guessing the air temperature outside and being forced to down a shot for every degree above or below the correct value. Fear to impress the tyrant and constant pressure to praise him resulted in drastic actions being taken. For instance, knowing of Stalin’s hatred for Khrushchev and not wishing to pass up on any opportunity to impress him, guests would place rotten tomatoes on Khruschev’s seat (and Stalin would place them directly into his suit!). Often this backfired and random guests would have their pants soiled with these tomatoes, much to Stalin’s humour.

For this, dear comrades, I wish you solidarity and peace for this festive season. May we be united in our hopes for a revolutionary new year and enjoy drinking, partying and having fun (although hopefully we won’t end up like Stalin’s comrades).

Syndicalism: Is revolution through unionisation desirable or practical?

One typically views a union as a group of unified masses of all different ages, backgrounds and occupations all standing together on a picket line much like the image above of members of Unite in the UK mobilised in London. All sexes, political orientations and cultures choose to mobilise this way. At first glance, it seems like the ultimate display of unity and collective society and the ultimate means by which a true community-led revolution can succeed. It can even, perhaps, be seen by some as a parallel or potential alternative to state centralisation of political power, and instrumental in the formation of a proletarian-led anarchy. However, it is also through this means of mobilisation that the state can further flourish as can other vanguardist and authoritative means of accumulation of power and resources amongst the masses, as well as equally appearing to further promote alternative pseudo-fascist authoritarian right wing ideology (the AFL CIO is an example of this, as were many unionist Falangist movements). Moreover, the wide and all-encompassing nature of many unions giving representation of multiple political groups of varying positions on the political spectrum would mean that they would have limited core motives to stand for, and so would be unlikely to drive the state to bring about any real political change once they have succeeded in gaining influence.

While skilled artisans of a specific trade may value specific forms of craft unions as a means of gaining support and unity with other individuals of this trade so as to preserve it and agitate for improved pay, conditions and support within the workplace, unions can also be instrumental in assisting the mobilisation low-skilled blue collar workers (who could have very clear working class values on any part of the political spectrum). This can be observed when referring Jeff Schurke's idea of a "blue collar empire". With this it would be seen that unions would be heavily instrumental in promoting a sense of solidarity within these communities of workers in the US during the Soviet era in fighting against the supposed threat of communism and its potential influence on them. This threat would be minimised through the boycotting of any Soviet trade unions and the formation of their own separate alternative as in the AFL-CIO. The view was that these far left unions would function as “totalitarian governments enslaving their people” and rivals to Nazi leadership, if anything, the Nazis appearing to have been somewhat more moderate with regard to their methods and organisation. The first right wing AFL-CIO unions were major advocates of traditional society and preservation of the existing economic conditions, thus making them direct polar opposites to the more progressive rank-and-file systems that the unions on the far-left favoured, in which agitation against the bureaucracy through greater emphasis on the general public and grassroots interests were seen as core values in dismantling existing economic conditions and striving for change within the workplace. The far-right unions also appeared to be a lot more sectarian and motivated by organisation in relation to the specific hard to replace crafts and skills one had so as to make them appear as such, as opposed to supporting more collective industrial action through mobilisation of the proletariat as with the more left-wing unions. Craft unions, however, also could potentially be seen to remain quite popular in principle from a socialist perspective, in that there is opposition to the key capitalist of the mechanisation of industry (which would prove to increase efficiency and productivity, as well as reduce the cost of the production- with the workforce being reduced in size and paid less). A craft is essentially a skill that requires use of the hands and that cannot be mechanised. Because of this, it would be considerably more labour intensive and less economical to supply for growing economic demands than mechanisation and modernisation of industry if this was preserved as a substantial part of the economy. It can thus be seen that there are two similar attitudes in favour of craft unionisation, although with different methods and reasoning behind them, on both the left and the right wing.

However, although appearing very much contradictory to the leftist ideology and core principles, the far-right Falangist movement in Spain during the 1930s adopted some strikingly similar positions on the matter to the left. They appeared to show strong disapproval of the changes in industry under capitalism, seeing that it “disregards the needs of the people, dehumanises private property and transforms the workers into shapeless masses that are prone to misery and disrepair”. With this, clear parallels to the Marxist ideology are apparent, as are other socialist principles in relation to social restructuring, addressing rural inequalities, and improving wealth distribution for the net benefit of society, in Jose Antonio Primo de Riveras’ 1934 manifesto. An anti-vanguard sentiment can also be noted here, with class struggle being seen as something that needs to be abolished, and the operation of the proposed syndicalist aims not relating to the comparative strength and stability of the individuals of whom the Spanish proletariat consisted, intending to reduce infighting and develop greater cooperation and collaboration amongst the workers. Advocacy for unity and bringing together all unions, as one would see with national federations of unions, is the preferred means of addressing this, seemingly going against the sectarian nature of many other unions globally. However, this and the forms of unionism that developed from these principles appeared to present nationalism as the main priority and reasoning behind them, so as to use the economic and social power they have accrued to their benefit, increasing their prominence in Europe and developing their influence as an imperial power. Similarly, these principles were also applied to the advocacy for the Spanish Armed Forces and military establishment of the time, so as to protect their political sovereignty and territorial integrity.

With this in mind, whilst it can be seen that, superficially, all unions are homogeneous in nature and focus on emancipation of workers and restructuring of society based off of anti-sectarian and socialist principles, it is clear that this is far from the truth, and not a purely leftist position to take. It is because of this sheer breadth of demographics, political leanings and ideologies associated with the unions, very little can be seen to suggest potential change to society (not to mention greater division and conflict in interest amongst individual unionised workers). This would present the syndicalist movement as an ironically very sectarian approach and a breeding ground for internal conflict and infighting amongst those involved. This is along with the huge potential for vanguardist sentiments to arise through this, undermining the democratic and socially oriented motives of unionisation.

https://spartacus-educational.com/SPfalange.htm#:~:text=6.,Cortes%20as%20we%20know%20it.

Schurke, J., (2024). Blue Collar Empire: The Untold Story of US Labour’s Global Anticommunist Crusade. Verso Books. DOI: https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=5ZAgEQAAQBAJ&pg=PA1910&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=2#v=onepage&q&f=false

China’s cultural revolution: A period of growth or an advocacy for continuity?

Set about with Mao Zedong’s promise to the public of achieving “all this and heaven too” in what would supposedly appear as a brief yet transformative period in which a renaissance in cultural and social thought could be accomplished, one may consider the cultural revolution as a process somewhat akin to the proposal of a permanent revolution. However, this would appear to be a rather superficial perspective on the matter that clearly lacks nuance. This would be due to the ironically more socially conservative elements of the approaches advocated by Mao’s government which had proven to put emphasis on traditional Chinese values and models for society which revolved around the preservation of the existing power structures that acted as the basis of the existing issues regarding class struggle, lack of individual and collective liberty, and wealth and power being concentrated amongst the elites. This also appears to go hand in hand with the strong sense of resistance by the proletariat during this period, along with the widespread campaigns for liberation which were practiced by many Chinese working class women.

When reflecting on the global political situation at the time of Mao’s cultural revolution, it is clear to note that this was at the time in which the Soviet Union was at its peak. This would have proven to act as a significant opposition and source of conflict and rivalry between the East and the West, thus being a hindrance to the development of a permanent international socialist revolution. This may also, in part, act as an explanation for the emphasis Mao placed on militarist development so as to effectively respond to this potential threat, as well as his imperialist interests and desire to be the supreme ruler to which all the main political power is centralised. As observed here, the foundations of a capitalist post colonial society ruled by classist ideals are preserved, and Mao can thus be quoted claiming to act as “the unquestioned and absolute monarch of all he surveyed”.

Equally, when looking at the cultural revolution from a social standpoint, it appears that traditional values were still very much fundamental in the operation of Chinese society during this period thus leading to much uprising and protest particularly by women and other marginalised groups, with it also being known that limited progress was made regarding understanding of sexuality. This situation arguably appeared to have worsened with sexual repression having become increasingly extreme and with limited means by which one could act against this, in spite of the widespread protesting by the repressed. Subservience to the bourgeoisie who appeared to present as the exact representation of the traditional family oriented model of society, as well as actively engaging in the repressive behaviours including “aversion to sexual deviance”, engagement in illicit and inappropriate sexual activities, as well as the manipulation and representation of sexuality through performance arts, namely opera. This can be reflected through Chen Kaige’s Palm D’Or film “Farewell My Concubine” in which, through themes of prostitution, masculinity, sexual repression, and suicide, this sentiment can be observed. These themes are applied to the conflicted nature of this society caused by the division between the more progressive and liberal attitudes, with the socially conservative attitudes, these being portrayed through the personalities of young actors Dieyi and Xiaolou (who would take on roles with clearly conflicting characteristics based off the traditional ideals on gender, with Dieyi taking on female roles and having his body manipulated so as to further suit these). Jinxian, the woman who Xiaolou eventually marries putting an end to his initial homosexual relationship with Dieyi, is very obviously looked down upon by much of the more conservative society and lives with the shame that comes for being engaged in prostitution. This eventually led to her suicide due fear and powerlessness, not only as a woman who has experienced exploitation and repression as a member of the supposedly weaker sex, but as a prostitute who merely used male exploitation of these attributes to support her livelihood. Her suicide could perhaps be seen as an act of submission to these ideas, further symbolising the repression she had to endure, appearing as a means of getting peace and freedom from the rigidity of these norms.

When linking back to the socioeconomic dimension of the advancements in society under Mao’s rule, it can be seen to potentially appear that only the most socially and economically influential members of the proletariat would be able to effectively advance in society, with this advancement being very much merely about gaining status within the existing class-led hierarchical system; the peak of liberty and general aim of the proletariat would be to ultimately become bourgeois.

Chen, P., (2024). Farewell My Concubine: All the World’s a Stage. Published in Criterion(23/7/2024). https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/8546-farewell-my-concubine-all-the-world-s-a-stage

Deshpande, G.P., (1966). China’s Great Cultural Revolution. Published in Economic and Political Weekly (October 29, 1966). 1(11). pp. 453-455. DOI: 4357141

Eggert, B., (2022). Farewell My Concubine. Published in Deep Focus Review (24/4/2022). https://www.deepfocusreview.com/definitives/farewell-my-concubine/

Rose, C., (1993). Chen Kaige (18/10/1993). https://charlierose.com/videos/8619

n.d. An Interview with Chen Kaige. https://ray.com.hk/tomson/interview.html

Singh, V.B., (1968). China’s Cultural Revolution. Published in The Indian Journal of Political Science 29(4) pp. 329-334. DOI: 41854291

Tu, X., and Wei, X., (2024). Politicized Sex Repression and Fascination in The

Chinese Cultural Revolution. Published in Journal of Interdisciplinary Cultural Studies. DOI: 10.29329/almamater.2024.1053.3