Joseph Stalin ruled the Soviet Union from 1922 until his death in 1954. He is widely recognized as a dictator, oppressor, and ruthless ruler who brought the Soviet Union from economic chaos to a superpower , but with the high cost of human sacrifice and its paranoia of opposition. Stalin considered himself the natural successor of Leninism-Marxism, but in reality he created his own system that did not go according to the philosophy of Karl Marx and Engels. The beginnings of Stalin's political career began just like all the others who gained prominence during the Bolshevik conquest of the Russian Empire. Lenin had successfully launched his revolution in October 1917 and became the leader of the Russian Communist Party until his death in January 1924. Stalin played only a minor role in the October Revolution and a relatively inconspicuous part in the Civil War ( Lee 1). Stalin was sent into exile in Siberia for committing crimes in Russia, and after his return he became a member of the Central Committee of the Bolshevik Party in 1912. Stalin worked to gain support in the communist party during its early stages. He created close contacts that he would later betray and others that he would use to help him become the next leader of the Soviet Union. He accumulated the posts of People's Commissar for Nationalities in 1917, liaison officer between the Politburo and the Orgburo in 1919, and general secretary of the party in 1922 (Lee 1). Soviet books and propaganda always depicted Stalin as having a close relationship with Lenin, as seen in textbooks, propaganda posters and Stalin himself who always spoke highly of his friendship with Lenin. However, Lenin and the Bolsheviks thought differently about Stalin. The 1920s and early 1930s saw the rise to power of an unorthodox... middle of paper, his brutal economic policies, was a form of true dictatorship and transformed the Soviet Union in a totalitarian state. Karl Marx wrote that the techniques of exploitation by the bourgeoisie would lead to a violent revolution on the part of the proletariat and would change the economic and social order of the state. In this case, Stalin exploited his proletariat and acted as a bourgeoisie, using the workforce for his personal gain and for what he thought would be the best way the Soviet Union would ever become a superpower. Joseph Stalin took the idea of ​​Marxism and added his own theory to it, distorting it and creating a new political system that was coined “Stalinism.” It has its similarities, but largely it is an ideological split that would cause the deaths of 20 million people during his rule, something that Karl Marx or Lenin never intended..