Final answer:
Stalin calling the Soviet Union a republic was misleading because the union was a totalitarian state with little genuine autonomy or democratic governance among its constituent Soviet Socialist Republics. The USSR's Marxist-Leninist ideology was at stark odds with the actual authoritarian and economically stagnant reality.
Step-by-step explanation:
The labeling of the Soviet Union as a republic by Joseph Stalin was misleading because, in essence, the term 'republic' implies a certain degree of autonomy and democratic governance among its constituent states. However, the reality of the USSR under Stalin was quite different. While officially, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) consisted of multiple 'republics' based on ethnic lines, many ethnic groups were not provided with their own republics. Those that were designated as republics had little real autonomy as they were under the tight control of a totalitarian, centrally ruled state. Decision-making was primarily in the hands of the Communist Party elite, and rights that are commonly associated with a republic, such as independently creating economic or foreign policies, were virtually nonexistent. This control extended to all aspects of life, reinforcing Stalin's authoritarian regime through the use of secret police and widespread propaganda, which often portrayed Stalin as a savior and forged a cult of personality around him.
The Soviet Union's system, while professing to follow Marxism-Leninism and principles like ending class warfare and achieving a worker's state, was by its nature paradoxical. It preached democracy, peace, and economic equality, yet it was characterized by oppression, prioritization of military power, and significant economic stagnation compared to Western standards. The leadership's tendency to falsify history and create a tailored biography for Stalin to support the ideological and political agenda of the time exemplified the nature of the Soviet regime.