The question is: are you corrupting society or is society corrupting you? In William Golding's conception, society corrupts you. What Stalin really did was instill fear and agony in every Russian. He even made his wife commit suicide because she didn't like the way he despised and treated less fortunate peasants and Russians. The great purge is considered one of the “worst genericides of the twentieth century,” (John, Adam ".org Genercide." Stalin's Purges. Jones Adam, 2002. Web. March 13, 2011.). The great purge lasted from 1937 to 1938 and affected all levels of society, including children. Children were used as pawns so that their parents would confess to trumped-up charges of betrayal and disloyalty because they knew their children's lives were at risk. Stalin also created a secret police to which he entrusted Nicolai Yezhov as head of the NKVD. He arrested all the people who terrorized Stalin. There were show trials for people trapped by Yezhov. In 1937, sixteen people, including one under the name Karl Radek, were put on trial. They were "accused of collaborating with Leon Trotsky in an attempt to overthrow the Soviet government with the aim of restoring capitalism" (Walker, Andy. "Educational Spartacus." The Great Purge. Andy Walker, 1997. Web. March 13, 2011. ) . Thirteen were found guilty and received the death sentence. Karl Radek and another man got only ten years. In 1938 there was also litigation against around 21 people. All of them were convicted and sentenced to death or later died in a labor camp, so we were told. We don't really know when it happened or how many died. Now all Stalin had to do was initiate litigation against the so-called Red Army and put them on trial. “Some historians believe... middle of paper......ar Study Guides. Network. 25 May 2011. .)”. They only worshiped it for a short time before Nikita Khrushchev stepped in and told the public about desalination. Works CitedWalker, Andy. "Educational Spartacus". The Great Purge. Andy Walker, 1997. Web. March 13, 2011. Jones, Adam. ".org Genercide." Stalin's purges. Jones Adam, 2002. Web. March 13, 2011. Copyright © 2011 Conservative Heritage Times. Conservative Times .org.Griffith, Anna. “Www.pvhs.chico.k12.ca.us.” Pvhs.chico.k12.ca.us/~bsilva/projects/russia/stalin/great_purge.htm. Anna Griffith. Network. ."Spark Notes: The Great Purge." SparkNotes: Today's most popular study guides. Network. May 25 2011. .