Totalitarianism, a warning to humanity

Abstract

The 20th century, more specifically in the period between the wars (1914-1945), was a time of great disorder in Europe, the heightened sense of exacerbated nationalism, the economic and political crises that affected European democracies and the success of the Russian Revolution opened doors for totalitarian regimes such as fascism and Nazism.

What is this form of government?

Totalitarianism is often considered the opposite of democracy due to its centralization in a charismatic leader who is like the personification of the State, in addition, this form of government prohibits opposition parties, restricts the privacy of citizens by spying on their private lives, among others limitations, in other words, as the fascist dictator Benito Mussolini said: “Everything in the State, nothing outside the State, nothing against a State”, sums up the concept of this regime.

The totalitarian triad

Joseph Stalin (1878-1953), Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), Benito Mussolini (1883-1945), were the leaders of the Soviet Union (USSR), Germany and Italy, respectively. Its tyrannical form of government had many similarities: like a political police, mass propaganda, its own ideologies, among others.

Benito Mussolini

After World War I, Italy faced significant discontent due to minimal territorial gains despite being on the victors’ side. The nation struggled with unemployment, inflation, and economic crisis, leading to strikes and peasant revolts. Amidst this turmoil, Benito Mussolini, a former socialist, seized the opportunity to rise to power. He established the right-wing nationalist group Fascio di Combattimento and the Black Shirts, who intimidated opposition.

The movement quickly swelled to 320 thousand by early 1920, drawing support from various societal groups. By 1921, Mussolini’s group transformed into a political party, securing numerous parliamentary seats. In 1922, demonstrating their power and popularity, Mussolini’s supporters marched on Rome. Subsequently, King Victor Emmanuel III appointed Mussolini as Prime Minister. Mussolini soon became ‘Duce,’ establishing his role as the leader and ushering in totalitarian rule in Italy.

Adolf Hitler

After the First World War, Germany faced the harsh conditions of the Treaty of Versailles, which were war reparations, reduction of the army, demilitarization of the Rhineland, among other measures that harmed the country and that is why the German people felt betrayed by their politicians. and military leaders.

The Weimar Republic suffered from hyperinflation and political instability due to the imposition of the treaty. A former corporal in the German army by the name of Adolf Hitler, after the First World War, was unemployed, so this led him to work as a spy for a very recent party, the German Workers’ Party (DAP), but he began to realize that the party’s ideology agreed with his worldview, so he decided to join that party, then together with his speaking skills he quickly rose to the leadership of the Nazi Party in 1921, exploiting public dissatisfaction by promising to annul the treaty and revitalize Germany.

In 1923, Hitler ordered a failed coup attempt known as the Munich Beer Hall Putsch, which took place on November 9, 1923. Hitler’s goal was to seize power from the Bavarian government. The action was controlled by the Bavarian police, and Hitler and several supporters – including Rudolf Hess – were arrested. After Hitler was released from prison, great help from across the Atlantic came to help him take power in Germany, the Great Depression, which intensified not only Germany’s problems, but the entire global economy, leading to the bank failure, unemployment and galloping inflation.

The economy fueled the rise of the Nazi Party, which was committed to resolving these crises. Losing the 1932 presidential election to Paul von Hindenburg, Hitler was appointed Chancellor due to the Nazi Party’s parliamentary influence. Hitler quickly promised authoritarian measures such as the Reichstag Fire Decree and the Enabling Act to consolidate his power. After Hindenburg’s death in 1934, Hitler merged the roles of Chancellor and President, declaring himself “Führer” and consolidating the Nazi dictatorship. His government was brutal and he and his party were responsible for the greatest genocide in human history, the Holocaust, which was the systematic persecution and extermination, supported by the Nazi government, that killed approximately six million Jews, according to the United States. United Holocaust Remembrance Museum (USHMM).

You can find more information about this dark story on the website: https://www.ushmm.org/pt-br.

Joseph Stalin

After Lenin’s death in 1924, the Soviet Union entered into a power struggle between the Georgian Joseph Stalin (1878-1953) and his opponent, the Ukrainian Leon Trotsky. Under his rule, the state exercised strict control over the economy and society, implementing rapid industrialization, forced collectivization of agriculture, and five-year plans. Politically, Stalin oppressed and persecuted any opposition in his purges, starved many people to death, as in the Holodomor episode, and established gulags, which are forced labor camps located in Siberia, some of these measures led to the establishment of a totalitarian regime that lasted for more than two decades.

Happy Joseph Stalin, photo available on the website:(https://www.strangehistory.net/2017/06/23/daily-history-picture-funny-face-stalin/)

1984: George Orwell’s dystopia

Biography of George Orwell (Eric Arthur Blair)

Eric Arthur Blair, known by the pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, poet, essayist, journalist, and critic. Born on June 25, 1903, in Motihari, Bengal (then part of the British Raj), he later worked in the Indian Imperial Police in Burma. During the Spanish Civil War in 1937, Orwell was involved and even shot in the neck, but he recovered. Due to lung disease, he did not participate in World War II. Sadly, he passed away on January 21, 1950, in England. Orwell’s final published work, 1984, serves as a powerful warning for future generations.

History of the Book “1984”

1984, also known as Nineteen Eighty-Four, is a dystopian novel and cautionary tale by George Orwell. It was published on June 8, 1949, by Secker & Warburg. The novel explores the consequences of totalitarianism, mass surveillance, and repressive control within society. Set in an imagined future, the story takes place in Airstrip One (formerly Great Britain), a province of the totalitarian superstate Oceania. The Party, led by the dictatorial figure Big Brother, engages in omnipresent government surveillance, historical negationism, and propaganda. The protagonist, Winston Smith, rebels against the ruling class’s ideals, leading to his arrest and psychological manipulation1984 has become a classic example of political and dystopian fiction, popularizing terms like “Big Brother,” “doublethink,” and “Newspeak” . Orwell’s work remains influential, and the adjective “Orwellian” describes totalitarian practices . His chilling vision of a controlled society continues to resonate with readers and remains relevant today.