Soviet response to the Hungarian revolution of 1956 Essay

Soviet response to the Hungarian revolution of 1956 - Essay Example Only a major and relentless Soviet military incursion quickly put an end to the profound political transformations happening in Hungary, the setting up of the Soviet-ruled administration led by Janos Kadar, and launched the ruthless rebuilding of Soviet rule in the country. This paper discusses the Warsaw Pact and the roots and effects of Hungary’s withdrawal from the pact on Soviet power and alliances. Introduction The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 characterized the unparalleled confrontation to communism in East Central Europe’s postwar history and regarded as one of the most disastrous episode in the series of political reforms after the demise of Stalin and loosening Stalinist rules in the province. The revolution had three separate stages characterized by transition in leadership. Stalinists were deposed on the 28th of October and the administration of Imre Nagy proclaimed its approval of the revolution, a negotiating period was affirmed, and the Soviet army pulled out from Budapest.2 Janos Kadar declared the establishment of the Hungarian Socialist Worker’s Party, and the formation of revolutionary organizations began. On the 1st of November the Soviet heads declared the initiation of the second military intervention.3 The Warsaw Pact and Hungary’s Withdrawal The Warsaw Pact is an agreement between the Soviet Union, Romania, Poland, Hungary, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, and Albania, which was ratified in 1955 and was formally named ‘The Treaty of Friendship, Co-operation and Mutual Assistance’.4 Supposedly the Warsaw Pact was a reaction to an analogous agreement formed in 1949 by Western Allies, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and the 1955 West Germany’s re-militarization, which raised impending risks to the Eastern nations.5 Even though it was emphasized by everybody that the Warsaw Pact was founded on absolute global equality and joint intervention in one another’s domestic issues, the agreement rapidly became a potent political instrument for the Soviet Union to control its allies and exploit their military might and influence. When Hungary attempted to pull out from the 1956 treaty, Soviet military responded to defeat the rebellion.6 There are several causes and effect of the withdrawal of Hungary from the Warsaw Pact. Hungary was the first among ex-Soviet protectorates to raise the possibility of unilaterally retreating from the Warsaw Pact. Rezso Nyers, the Hungarian Socialist Party Chairman, declared in January 1990 that the country withdrew its membership from the Eastern Bloc and that it planned to encourage better alliances with Central European countries, such as Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and West Germany.7 Nyers further appealed to the Soviet military to exit Hungary immediately. Afterwards, Budapest made a settlement for the total extraction of Soviet troops by the 30th of June 1991, which was ratified on the 10th of March 1 990, by the foreign representatives of Hungary and Soviet Union.8 Budapest, in 1990 and 1991, was determined in its resistance to the prolongation of the Warsaw Pact. Prime Minister Jozsef Antall proposed in June 1990 that the

Harriet Jacobs, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Essay

Harriet Jacobs, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself - Essay Example It is because in male dominated society, female slaves were the worst sufferers of male lust. Also since women’s financial contribution was equal to their male counterparts’, they were often neglected the allowances which were normally granted to the male slaves. In the narrative, Jacob upholds the fact that the nineteenth century society was, in the first place, very much discriminatory to women. On top of it, slavery would permit the male dominated society to exert their brutal desires over the female slaves to the fullest extent. Such brutal treatment would never hold them accountable. In the narrative, Jacob shows that the evil of slavery puts the despotic males at the control of humanly institutions like motherhood, womanhood, etc. Therefore, the slave-owners not only denied humanity by continuing slavery, but also reached the extent to oppose the most sacred institution of womanhood as well as motherhood. When Jacob says that â€Å"Slavery is terrible for men; bu t it is far more terrible for women†¦Superadded to the burden common to all, they have wrongs, and sufferings, and mortifications peculiarly their own† (Jacobs 23), she refers to a masculine but horrible face of slavery in the context of femininity. In addition to what the slaves, whether they are male and female, suffer from, a female slave has to suffer vehemently from a torrent of emotional anguish first as an object of lust and then as a mother. Different from other slave narratives, Jacob has used the scope to view slavery from a quite different angle. Jacob notes that most of the lave narratives of her era have a common pattern of depicting the graphic details of whipping, physical torturing, etc. Subsequently these narratives uphold a dangerous escape of their slave protagonists to the North. But Jacob depicts a quite different situation for a female slave. She shows that for a female slave, any attempt to escape from the slavery was more of a heart-piercing dilemm a because of their progenies. She could neither endure the torture nor leave their children behind and run away. So, their only way was to submit to their fate. But when other women would let themselves collapse under the crushing torture of slavery, Linda retains her mental strength to oppose Mr. Flint’s desire. Linda’s mental strength is evident in a speech: â€Å"When he told me that I was made for his use, made to obey his command in every thing; that I was nothing but a slave, whose will must and should surrender to his, never before had my puny arm felt half so strong† (Jacobs 46). Indeed, this simple comment of Linda tends to summarize the gist of the whole narrative as well as of the evil of slavery in American society during the early nineteenth century. It can be viewed from different perspectives and angles. As a mother, Linda violently fights against slavery. She wants to save her children from the evil of slavery. She plays hoax on Mr. Flints in ord er to attain freedom for her children, Benny and Elena. She had to spend innumerous sleepless night in the tight attic in which she can hardly stand. But her only pleasure is that she can see her run around her Aunt Martha’s house freely. Indeed, for any male reader, such sacrifice may seem to be something mere, but the pains, sufferings and angst she undergoes during those days of slavery are