In developing your answer to Part II, be sure to keep these explanations in mind: Identify—means to put a name to or to name. Define—means to explain features of a thing or concept so that it can be understood. Argue—means to provide a series of statements that provide evidence and reasons to support a conclusion.Miron Dolot, eyewitness account of growing up in Ukraine under Stalin’s Soviet policy But thanks to those meetings, those of us able to attend learned that sometime in January the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, after accusing Ukraine of deliberately sabotaging the fulfillment of grain quotas, had sent [Pavel] Postyshev, a sadistically cruel Russian chauvinist, as its viceroy to Ukraine. His appointment played a crucial role in the lives of all Ukrainians. It was Postyshev who brought along and implemented a new Soviet Russian policy in Ukraine. It was an openly proclaimed policy of deliberate and unrestricted destruction of everything that was Ukrainian. From now on, we were continually reminded that there were “bourgeois-nationalists” among us whom we must destroy. They were the ones causing our “food difficulties.” Those hideous “bourgeois-nationalists” were starving us to death, and on and on went the accusations. At every meeting, we were told that the fight against the Ukrainian national movement was as important for the “construction of socialist society” as the struggle for bread. This new campaign against the Ukrainian national movement had resulted in the annihilation of the Ukrainian central government as well as all Ukrainian cultural, educational, and social institutions. There were also arrests in our village as a result of this new policy. With the arrival of Postyshev, the grain collection campaign was changed into a Seed Collection Campaign. The fact that the farmers were starving did not bother the authorities at all. What they worried about was the lack of seed for the spring sowing. I remember one of Postyshev’s speeches in which he instructed all Party organizations to collect seed with the same methods used in collecting grain. He also ordered the expropriation of grain seed which had supposedly been stolen or illegally distributed as food for the members of collective farms. It was made clear that the needed seed must be collected and delivered immediately and at all costs. But it was beyond our comprehension that the Communist authorities could so ruthlessly demand grain at a time when the bodies of starved farmers were littering the roads, fields, and backyards. As we listened to these harangues, we often thought that perhaps there was hidden sabotage at work to discredit the Communist Party. But we were naive. Devoid of all human emotions, the Party wanted grain from us; starvation was no excuse. The Party officials treated us with contempt and impatience. All this was heightened by the traditional Russian distrust and dislike of Ukrainian farmers. Thus we were forced to listen to the endless lies of these Russian officials that there was no famine; that no one was starving. Those who died were the lazy ones who refused to work at the collective farm. They deserved to die. Source: Miron Dolot, Execution by Hunger: The Hidden Holocaust, 1985

Question

In developing your answer to Part II, be sure to keep these explanations in mind: Identify—means to put a name to or to name. Define—means to explain features of a thing or concept so that it can be understood. Argue—means to provide a series of statements that provide evidence and reasons to support a conclusion.Miron Dolot, eyewitness account of growing up in Ukraine under Stalin’s Soviet policy But thanks to those meetings, those of us able to attend learned that sometime in January the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, after accusing Ukraine of deliberately sabotaging the fulfillment of grain quotas, had sent [Pavel] Postyshev, a sadistically cruel Russian chauvinist, as its viceroy to Ukraine. His appointment played a crucial role in the lives of all Ukrainians. It was Postyshev who brought along and implemented a new Soviet Russian policy in Ukraine. It was an openly proclaimed policy of deliberate and unrestricted destruction of everything that was Ukrainian. From now on, we were continually reminded that there were “bourgeois-nationalists” among us whom we must destroy. They were the ones causing our “food difficulties.” Those hideous “bourgeois-nationalists” were starving us to death, and on and on went the accusations. At every meeting, we were told that the fight against the Ukrainian national movement was as important for the “construction of socialist society” as the struggle for bread. This new campaign against the Ukrainian national movement had resulted in the annihilation of the Ukrainian central government as well as all Ukrainian cultural, educational, and social institutions. There were also arrests in our village as a result of this new policy. With the arrival of Postyshev, the grain collection campaign was changed into a Seed Collection Campaign. The fact that the farmers were starving did not bother the authorities at all. What they worried about was the lack of seed for the spring sowing. I remember one of Postyshev’s speeches in which he instructed all Party organizations to collect seed with the same methods used in collecting grain. He also ordered the expropriation of grain seed which had supposedly been stolen or illegally distributed as food for the members of collective farms. It was made clear that the needed seed must be collected and delivered immediately and at all costs. But it was beyond our comprehension that the Communist authorities could so ruthlessly demand grain at a time when the bodies of starved farmers were littering the roads, fields, and backyards. As we listened to these harangues, we often thought that perhaps there was hidden sabotage at work to discredit the Communist Party. But we were naive. Devoid of all human emotions, the Party wanted grain from us; starvation was no excuse. The Party officials treated us with contempt and impatience. All this was heightened by the traditional Russian distrust and dislike of Ukrainian farmers. Thus we were forced to listen to the endless lies of these Russian officials that there was no famine; that no one was starving. Those who died were the lazy ones who refused to work at the collective farm. They deserved to die. Source: Miron Dolot, Execution by Hunger: The Hidden Holocaust, 1985

Answer 1

In this passage from Miron Dolot's memoir, he provides an eyewitness account of growing up in Ukraine under Stalin's Soviet policy. Dolot explains that the Communist Party of the Soviet Union accused Ukraine of sabotaging grain quotas and sent a cruel Russian chauvinist named Pavel Postyshev as its viceroy to Ukraine. Postyshev implemented a new Soviet Russian policy that aimed to destroy everything Ukrainian. Dolot refers to the campaign against the Ukrainian national movement, which resulted in the annihilation of Ukrainian institutions and government. He also mentions arrests in his village as a result of this policy.

The grain collection campaign was changed into a Seed Collection Campaign, and Dolot recounts Postyshev instructing Party organizations to collect seed using the same methods used for collecting grain. The authorities were not concerned about the starving farmers but rather about the lack of seed for spring sowing. Dolot highlights that it was difficult to comprehend how the Communist authorities could demand grain ruthlessly at a time when people were dying of starvation.

The Party officials treated the Ukrainian farmers with contempt and impatience, which Dolot attributes to the traditional Russian distrust and dislike of Ukrainian farmers. He emphasizes that the Party officials incessantly lied, claiming that there was no famine and that those who died were lazy individuals who deserved to die because they refused to work at the collective farm.

Overall, Dolot's account uncovers the devastating effects of Stalin's policies on Ukraine, including deliberate attempts to destroy Ukrainian culture and institutions, as well as the indifference and cruelty of Party officials towards the suffering and death of Ukrainian farmers.