--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: How do you build a history based on…" description: "\"“How do you build a history based on ceaseless self-slaughter and betrayal? Do you deny it? Forget it? But then you are left orphaned. So history is re..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b3/peter-pomerantsev-40637_great-leader_how-do-you-build-a-history-based-on-ceas_1747684.jpg" --- # How do you build a history based on ceaseless… ![“How do you build a history based on ceaseless self-slaughter and betrayal? Do you deny it? Forget it? But then you are left orphaned. So history is rewritten to suit the present. As the President looks for a way to validate his own authoritarianism, Stalin is praised as a great leader who won the…” quote by Peter Pomerantsev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b3/peter-pomerantsev-40637_great-leader_how-do-you-build-a-history-based-on-ceas_1747684.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b3/peter-pomerantsev-40637_great-leader_how-do-you-build-a-history-based-on-ceas_1747684.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0b3/peter-pomerantsev-40637_great-leader_how-do-you-build-a-history-based-on-ceas_1747684.jpg) > ““How do you build a history based on ceaseless self-slaughter and betrayal? Do you deny it? Forget it? But then you are left orphaned. So history is rewritten to suit the present. As the President looks for a way to validate his own authoritarianism, Stalin is praised as a great leader who won the Soviet Union the war. On TV the first attempts to explore the past, the well-made dramas about Stalin’s Terror of the 1930s, are taken off screen and replaced with celebrations of World War II. (But while Stalin’s victory is celebrated publicly and loudly, invoking him also silently resurrects old fears: Stalin is back! Be very afraid!) The architecture reflects these agonies. The city writhes as twentyfirst-century Russia searches, runs away, returns, denies, and reinvents itself. “Moscow is the only city where old buildings are knocked down,” says Mozhayev, “and then rebuilt again as replicas of themselves with straight lines, Perspex, double glazing.” The Moskva Hotel opposite the Kremlin, a grim Stalin gravestone of a building, is first deconstructed, then after much debate about what should replace it, is eventually rebuilt as a slightly brighter-colored version of itself. And this will be the fate of Gnezdnikovsky, demolished and then rebuilt to house restaurants in the faux tsarist style, where waiters speak pre-revolutionary Russian, the menu features pelmeni with brains, and tourists are delighted at encountering the “real Russia.” And”” [Peter Pomerantsev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-pomerantsev/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage critiques how societies rewrite history to serve current power, erasing painful truths and recreating façades that mask underlying trauma. **In simple terms:** History is reshaped to suit present power. Key Takeaway Question the narratives presented. Themes history politics memory authoritarianism urban change Mood critical analytical cautious Type critical reflective political When to use this quote - education - media literacy - urban planning Key Concepts political theory cultural studies Questions to Reflect On - How does rewriting history affect collective memory? - What responsibilities do citizens have to preserve truth? A Different Perspective Historical narratives can be manipulated to legitimize authority. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dramas Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dramas-stalin-1575753/) [Great leader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-leader/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [History Rewritten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history-rewritten-1333088/) [Soviet union](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soviet-union/) [Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stalin/) [Stalin Afraid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stalin-afraid-827945/) [Stalin Terror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stalin-terror-1575752/) [Straight line](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/straight-line/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [World war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-war/) [World war ii](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-war-ii/) ## Related quotes > [“How do you build a history based on ceaseless self-slaughter and betrayal? 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On TV the first attempts to explore the past, the well-made dramas about Stalin’s Terror of the 1930s, are taken off screen and replaced with celebrations of World War II. (But while Stalin’s victory is celebrated publicly and loudly, invoking him also silently resurrects old fears: Stalin is back! Be very afraid!) The architecture reflects these agonies. The city writhes as twentyfirst-century Russia searches, runs away, returns, denies, and reinvents itself. “Moscow is the only city where old buildings are knocked down,” says Mozhayev, “and then rebuilt again as replicas of themselves with straight lines, Perspex, double glazing.” The Moskva Hotel opposite the Kremlin, a grim Stalin gravestone of a building, is first deconstructed, then after much debate about what should replace it, is eventually rebuilt as a slightly brighter-colored version of itself. 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