Joseph Stalin led the Soviet Union from 1922 until his death in 1954. He is widely recognized as a dictator, oppressor, and ruthless leader who took the Soviet Union from economic disaster to a superpower. but with the high cost of human sacrifice and his paranoia of opposition. Stalin saw himself as the natural successor of Leninism-Marxism, but in reality he created his own system which did not conform to the philosophy of Karl Marx and Engels. Stalin's early political career began like all those that rose to prominence during the Bolshevik takeover 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 discreet role 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 from the Communist Party in its early days. He made 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 held the positions 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 have always portrayed Stalin having a close relationship with Lenin, as shown in school textbooks, propaganda posters and Stalin himself always praising his friendship with Lenin. However, Lenin and the Bolsheviks thought differently from Stalin. The 1920s and early 1930s saw the rise middle of paper... his brutal economic policies' unorthodox rise to power, it was a form of true dictatorship and transformed the Soviet Union into a totalitarian state. Karl Marx wrote that techniques of exploitation by the bourgeoisie would lead to a violent revolution of the proletariat and change the economic and social order of the state. In this case, Stalin exploited his proletariat and acted like a bourgeoisie, using labor for personal gain and what he thought was the best way for the Soviet Union to 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 called "Stalinism." This has similarities, but it is largely an ideological split that would result in the deaths of 20 million people under his rule, something Karl Marx or Lenin never predicted..