ABSTRACT
To interpret the causes and larger historical meaning of this terrorist phase may always present perplexing and indeed insuperable problems. One cause that was slighted in Soviet Politics was the necessity for speed in transforming backward agrarian Russia into a modern industrial state, a task that had to be carried out in the teeth of a generally hostile world. An optimistic view would hold that the terror under Stalin was part of a whole process of destruction and reconstruction that could usher in a new and freer order of society. Those who lean toward this assessment have certain very general points to make that deserve the most serious consideration. A recurring theme in Soviet Politics is that the means have swallowed up and distorted the original ends. Ideals do erode and change under the force of circumstances, as any good history of Christianity makes plain.
