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Uses historic documentary motion pictures combined with newer Films sequences to tell the story of Berlin from the fall of the Third Reich to the building of the wall between East and West. Reviews the political events leading to the crisis in Berlin, shows the tragic consequences for the people of Berlin, and explains the reasons for the deep commitment of the Western powers to keep West Berlin free of communist control.
This program traces the history of the Communist Party in the United States. The dramatic sequences feature a re-enactment of the Bridgeman Convention in 1921 and show how the Communist Party of the United States was controlled by the Communist International, and directed by it. Benjamin Gitlow, former General Secretary of the Communist Party of America and American representative to the Comintern in the 1920’s, is a special guest on the program. Mr. Gitlow was twice candidate for Vice President of the USA on the Communist Party ticket. Mr. Gitlow was expelled from the Communist Party of America in 1929, as a result of his refusal to accept a directive ordering himto yield leadership of the Party.
Discusses the international aims of the Communist Party and methods used to achieve these aims. Portrays Lenin's establishment of the Third International. Also reenacts the development of the ideas of a Communist hierarchy and of the justification of the use of illegal apparatuses for seizing control. Explains Communist maneuvers during the second half of the 1920's and in the 1930's, the Popular Front and the activities during the Spanish Civil War. Concludes with a description of the policies after 1947 and the ultimate aims of the Communist Party.
Provides a kaleidoscopic preview of Communist history. Explains the basis for the series and establishes documentary sources. Uses reenactments to show the collaboration on the Communist Manifesto by Marx and Engels, the development of Marxism, and the founding of the First International. Discusses the fallacy in Marx's premise and concludes by introducing Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov, later known as Lenin.
Reviews the progress of the Communist Party in Japan from pre-war days to the present. Includes film footage showing the release from prison of leading communist leaders just after World War II. Discusses the high degree of trained leadership, the party and the party's influence in politics.
The economics of imperialism from pure economic exploitation to modern economic aid and development are discussed in this program, beginning with Lenin’s thesis of imperialism as the last stage of capitalism and concluding with a view of Communist Russia as the modern imperialist. New nationalistic nations tend to perceive imperialism in the old light, and Lenin’s appeal today is predominantly emotional. Among the different forms of imperialism discussed are economic exploitation, by government and private interests; welfare; economic aid and development; and various combinations of these factors. How these forms developed indifferent areas is also discussed. Concludes Stoessinger, the economics of empire today is a mixed question. Western Imperialism is primarily historical, and the Soviet Union today is using Western policies of the Nineteenth century.
Discusses the Khrushchev era and interprets the policies of his regime. Provides details of Khrushchev's ascension to power and describes the differences between him and Stalin. Features special guest Merrill Spalding, research associate at the Hoover Institution and former professor of Russian history at Stanford University.
Features significant excerpts from the preceding 12 programs and lists the many myths of communism. These include (1) freedom for the working man, (2) communism as a genuine expression of the desire of subject peoples, (3) the dictatorship of the proletariat which became dictatorship over the proletariat, (4) Stalin and Lenin as heroes of the proletariat, and (5) communism as an independent political philosophy.
Stoessinger, professor of political science, and two guests, anthropologist Carleton Stevens Coon, and psychologist Otto Klineberg, present their views on why people organize into nation states and on the characteristics of the state. Mr. Klineberg feels that states arise from a desire for personal identification with a group out of which rises a sense of national identification. Mr. Coon believes that the state is an outgrowth of the mammalian instinct to have boundaries and economic securities. From small groups of families grow villages and ultimately states. Dr. Stoessinger emphasizes that the will to join must be present.
Does geography make a difference in political thought? Dr. Parkinson discusses his book Evolution of Political Thought, and suggests that geography, and geographical isolation, do make a difference in political thought and practice. He traces the cycle which goes from a primitive paternal structure through a monarchy to an aristocracy, then to a dictatorship, then back to monarchy. Although he sees this as a fairly consistent pattern, Professor Parkinson does not believe that this is, in effect, historical determinism. Men can change his destiny, he says, and the experiments in democracy, although they have not been going long enough to suggest a definite trend, prove man’s freedom of choice. In fitting the Soviet Union into this pattern, Professor Parkinson remarks that it could be called a technological monarchy.