Stalinism

[stah-luh-niz-uhm]

noun

1. the principles of communism associated with Joseph Stalin, characterized especially by the extreme suppression of dissident political or ideological views, the concentration of power in one person, and an aggressive international policy.

Stalinism

/ ˈstɑːlɪˌnɪzəm /

noun

1. the theory and form of government associated with Stalin: a variant of Marxism-Leninism characterized by totalitarianism, rigid bureaucracy, and loyalty to the state

Stalinism

1. The form of Marxism associated with Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. Stalinism emphasizes the repression of all dissent, often by brutal means; a rigid adherence to government management of economic life; and the domination of all communist movements worldwide by the Soviet Union. In holding to these beliefs, Stalin opposed Leon Trotsky. (See Trotskyism.)

Other Word Forms

• Stalinist noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of Stalinism¹

First recorded in 1925–30; Stalin + -ism

Example Sentences

Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s documentation of Stalinism strikes the same note: the elimination of a private existence away from politics, with the regime constantly forcing itself upon one’s attention, feeding each individual’s growing atomization and learned helplessness.

From Salon

Kelman said that the system of "turning in your friends to the government" was reminiscent of "Soviet Stalinism."

From Salon

There's another distortion in Marxist thought, what you described as "the monster known as Stalinism."

From Salon

"Communism survived the deaths of Stalin and Mao, but Stalinism and Maoism did not."

From Salon

As Hannah Arendt so insightfully observed in her landmark work “The Origins of Totalitarianism”, Stalinism and Hitlerism were the two major totalitarian movements of the first half of the 20th century.

From Salon