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Revision as of 00:53, 8 May 2006 by 81.64.237.90 (talk) (→Examples)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)A cult of personality is a political institution in which a country's leader encourages praise of himself and his deeds to such a degree that this praise affects nearly every facet of the country's culture.
A cult of personality differs from general hero worship in that it is specifically built around political leaders. However, the term cult of personality is often applied by analogy to refer to adulation of non-political leaders.
Background
Throughout history there have always been leaders who have fostered adulation. For much of premodern times, absolute monarchies were the dominant form of government, and monarchs were almost always held in enormous reverence. Through the principle of the divine right of kings, rulers were said to hold office by the will of God. Imperial China, ancient Egypt, and the Roman Empire are especially noted for elevating monarchs to the status of god-kings.
The advent of democratic ideas in Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries made it increasingly difficult for monarchs to preserve this aura. However, the subsequent development of photography, sound recording, film and mass production, as well as public education and techniques used in commercial advertising, enabled political leaders to project a positive image like never before. It was under these circumstances in the 20th century that the best-known personality cults arose.
The criticism of personality cults often focuses on the regimes of Joseph Stalin, Adolf Hitler, and Mao Zedong. During the peak of their reigns these leaders appeared as god-like infallible rulers. Their portraits were hung in every home or public building, and many artists and poets were instructed to produce only works that glorified the leader. The term "cult of personality" comes from Karl Marx's critique of the "cult of the individual":
- From my antipathy to any cult of the individual, I never made public during the existence of the International the numerous addresses from various countries which recognized my merits and which annoyed me. . . . Engels and I first joined the secret society of Communists on the condition that everything making for superstitious worship of authority would be deleted from its statute.
Nikita Khrushchev recalled Marx's criticism in his 1956 "Secret Speech" denouncing Stalin to the 20th Party Congress:
- Comrades, the cult of the individual acquired such monstrous size chiefly because Stalin himself, using all conceivable methods, supported the glorification of his own person. . . . One of the most characteristic examples of Stalin's self-glorification and of his lack of even elementary modesty is the edition of his Short Biography, which was published in 1948.
- This book is an expression of the most dissolute flattery, an example of making a man into a godhead, of transforming him into an infallible sage, "the greatest leader," "sublime strategist of all times and nations." Finally no other words could be found with which to lift Stalin up to the heavens.
- We need not give here examples of the loathsome adulation filling this book. All we need to add is that they all were approved and edited by Stalin personally and some of them were added in his own handwriting to the draft text of the book.
The most famous fictional cult of personality is probably that of Big Brother in the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. The character was possibly based on Britain's Earl Kitchener although more likely based on Stalin.
Characteristics
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Personality cults usually characterize totalitarian, authoritarian, or one-party states, especially those with a strong revolutionary consciousness. The reputation of a single leader, often characterized as the "liberator" or "savior" of the people, elevates that leader to a near-divine level.
A personality cult is also characterized with many images and representations of a leader in public places, including statues, billboards, posters, signs, paintings, and vast murals. In many cases the leader is portrayed in various types of garb (indicating many roles) and in heroic positions. This is meant to emphasize the greatness and wisdom of the leader. The leader's slogans and other quotes cover massive spaces, and books containing the leader's speeches and writings fill up bookstores, libraries, and schools. The level of flattery can reach heights which may appear absurd to outsiders.
Personality cults aim to make the leader and the state seem synonymous, so it becomes impossible to comprehend the existence of one without the other. It also helps justify the often harsh rule of a dictatorship, and propaganda leads the citizens into believing that the leader operates as a kind and just ruler. In addition, cults of personality often arise out of an effort to quash opposition within a ruling elite, and help leaders to crush their political opponents.
To justify personality cults, leaders sometimes try to present themselves as personally humble and modest and characterize their vast personality cults as spontaneous shows of popular support and affection.
Cults of personality can collapse very quickly after the ousting or death of the leader. In some cases, the leader formerly the subject of a cult of personality becomes vilified after his death, especially after a violent overthrow. A massive effort of renaming and image-removal may take place.
The term "personality cult" does not generally refer to showing respect for the dead (such as historic national founders like Vladimir Lenin or George Washington), nor does it refer to honoring symbolic leaders who have no real power. The latter often occurs with constitutional monarchies, such as that of Thailand, in which the king or queen's image is respectfully displayed in many public places, but convention or law forbids them from converting this respect into real political power.
Cults of personality do not appear universal among all authoritarian societies. A few of the world's most oppressive regimes have in fact exhibited little to no worship of the leader. The Khmer Rouge government in Cambodia and the theocratic Taliban government of Afghanistan lacked many of the trappings of cults of personality, and the leaders in these regimes remained almost anonymous. In these cases, the lack of a cult of personality seems partly motivated by the desire to project an image of a faceless but omniscient and omnipresent state. In other cases, such as the post-Mao People's Republic of China, authorities frown upon the establishment of a cult of personality for fear it may upset the balance of power between the leaders within the political elite.
The cult of the personality in a state as described above seems similar to the functioning of person-centered leadership in some cults. When the followers accept the charismatic authority of a person (e.g. a guru, or avatar) then this personality cult can take strong forms. Sometimes, cults or new religious movements defend this practice by comparing their living leader to mainstream religions like Christianity in which Jesus was venerated when he was still alive, or to the Ishta-Deva (chosen deity) principle in Hinduism.
Examples
In alphabetical order, modern leaders with a noted cult of personality include:
- George W. Bush of United States of America
- Hafez al-Assad of Syria
- Mustafa Kemal Ataturk of Turkey
- Nicolae Ceauşescu of Romania, "Genius of the Carpathians": established a personality cult in connection with his Juche-inspired program of systematization
- Hugo Rafael Chávez Frias of Venezuela "El comandante": his face can be seen depicted in billboards across the country, his portrait is located in all public buildings. Constantly interrupts television and radio transmissions to air messages of the triumph of his government, and airs a Sunday program that can last up to 8 and a half hours.
- Gnassingbe Eyadema of Togo
- Adolf Hitler of Germany, "Der Führer": Germans under his rule were encouraged to use "Heil Hitler" as a common greeting.
- Enver Hoxha of Albania
- Saddam Hussein of Iraq, "Hero-President": Between segments Iraqi television featured music videos singing Saddam's praises.
- Kim Il-sung of North Korea, "Great Leader": declared "Eternal President" following his death
- Kim Jong-il of North Korea, "Dear Leader": according to an announcement from state television, he "came down from heaven"; reportedly skeptical of the praise he receives
- Mao Zedong of China: during the Cultural Revolution, all published works, including scientific papers, had a quote from Mao, always highlighted in boldface or red.
- Mobutu of Zaire, "the fearless warrior who because of his inflexible will to win, moves from victory to victory, leaving fire in his wake."
- Benito Mussolini of Italy, "Il Duce"
- Francisco Macías Nguema of Equatorial Guinea
- Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea
- Saparmurat Niyazov of Turkmenistan , "Türkmenbaşy": criticizes the extent of his personality cult and allegedly blames it on "toadying" by government officials.
- Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union: inspired the term
- The Rock band Living Colour wrote a song titled "Cult of Personality", which discusses idol worship.