Example research essay topic: 20 Th Century Nazi Germany - 1,896 words

NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote

Totalitarianism in the 20 th century China, Russia, Nazi Germany It's incredible to me that after fifty years of Soviet power, paradise should be kept under lock and key. Nikita Khrushchev Totalitarianism is a synonym of authoritarianism or political collectivism taken to its logical and physical conclusion the state in which government possesses total control over the individual. Totalitarianism is the ultimate concentration of power at the top level in the society (government or single person in case of authoritarianism). Countries like Soviet Union (especially under Stalin) and Nazi Germany (under Hitler) and China (under Great Mao) possessed or still possess totalitarianism that oftentimes resulted in civilian oppression and casualties in clean-up operations.

Being a derivative of Nationalism, Totalitarianism believes that the ultimate symbol of the nation is the ruler, whether a king, an emperor or a dictator. It is contrary to democracy, since the people are subject to the state (Kraut, 45). Such a state existed in Russia before 1917, when the Tsar ruled much as he pleased, ignoring the people represented in the Duma. Again similar to Russia, China at the turn of the century was ruled by a monarch more interested in the desires of European business men than the needs of her people (Steep, 120). Totalitarianism in China, Russia, and German each possessed similar features depicted below.

In all three countries the State Has Complete Power over All Aspects of a Persons Life. In China, the state defines how many children a family can have. In Russia, the state attempted to control the human mind executing all those suspected in thinking or conspiracy against the communist regime and Stalin rule. In Germany, the state tried to control the genetic and ethnic composition, by executing the Jews and other ethnic groups of people of not Germanic origin (Perelman, 78). In all three countries the State Tried to Abolish Freedom. In Russia, people were considered of no importance due to the great population to draw people from.

In Germany people were considered as stupid and the power was thought to be meaningful only at the top. In China, that built up on the Soviet model and possessed large population the human rule was also of little importance with the power being concentrated at the top (Kinney, 230). In all three countries the State engaged in lots of Propaganda to keep the minds of the humans occupied. The Nazi Germans believed that they have the duty to kill the abnormal non-German ethnic groups and to take over the Europe (Mattingly, 194). In the Soviet Union, the people were told that the Soviet military power was the worlds strongest and that in order to spread the communism, which was the universal duty of all Soviets, people had to work and scarify themselves. In China, the propaganda was concentrated on the hard work, export and economic conquest of the capitalist countries (Steep, 123).

In all three countries the State Censorship and Manipulation of the Media were Constant. In Germany and USSR the state controlled all media (print, audio and video) and aimed to allow the information to the people that would make people more submissive to the rule. In china, at present about 80 % of the media is state controlled, yet some autonomy is given to the corporations. In all three countries the State No Opposition to the Leader and the One Permissible Party Is Allowed. In Soviet Union Siberia, and Uranium mines were a place of exile to those who opposed the totalitarian rule. Yet the majority of the opponents would be destroyed by the KGB agents without trial.

In Germany, the opposition was also suppressed. People would be put in concentration camps (as in case with Jews who opposed Hitler) or executed on the spot. In china there were cases when the military tanks would run over the opposition that gathered on the streets to oppose the totalitarian rule (Kraut, 48). In all three countries the State Birth and Family, Schooling, Information Dissemination, Economic and Political Life, Cultural Activities, Religion, Social Relationships Are All Controlled by the Regime. In germany, the jews were expected to be sterilized. In the USSR, the birth was encouraged, because the Soviets needed more labor to compensate the inefficiency of their economic system.

The Chinese government on the contrary tried to control the birth explaining that the China is not able to feed all people who have more than one child (Steep, 129). It should be also noted that A "Dictatorship" or totalitarianism of one person, divorces Itself as Much as Possible from the People, Limits Freedom, Is Temporary and Usually Grows out of a Faltering Republican Framework (Perelman, 79). An "Authoritarian" Regime Is Dictatorship with No Time Limits, Both Dictatorship and Authoritarianism Act with the Frame Work of Society and Do Not Seek the Creation of a New Reality (Kinney, 236). Totalitarianism in all these countries of our choice: China, Russia, and Nazi Germany comprised certain elements of fascism. Just like totalitarianism, fascism is Extremely Nationalistic Form of Government Where the People Are Subordinate to the State, Symbolized by the single Leader with ultimate power. Pleas refer to the description of the fascist totalitarian elements in Soviet Union (communist Russia), Nazi Germany, and Communist china (Steep, 138).

In all three countries the Single Party Control with Emphasis on Fascist, Militarist, and Imperialist Ideas. The Germany, that did not possess any colonies unlike France, and Britain tried to build it empire in the East at the expense of Poland and Soviet Union. The Chinese government tried to control the Asia, capturing Hong Kong, Taiwan and exercising influence on both Koreas and Thailand. The Soviets concentrated on strong militarist ideas and the belief that Russia can control the whole world. As a result, the USSR conquered all Eastern Europe and had strong ties with Cuba, South America, and Middle East (Perelman, 81). In all three countries the State Usually Appeals to Middle and Upper Classes and Preserves Aspects of Capitalism.

In Germany, no German was deprived of possessions or forced to work for not pay. In Russia, the elite (party) could also informally control the factories and the lives of other people, thus adhering to the capitalist rule of ownership of public goods. In china, the government also possesses abundant wealth and is free to exercise as much influence on the workers as possible (Kraut, 50). In all three countries the State Law and Order were / are Heavily Stressed as Expressed by the Slogan "Believe! Obey! Work!" This concept goes without saying in Russia that put it bluntly Those who do not work, shall not eat, thus putting those who evaded work into prisons feeding them with only bread and water until they agree to return to work.

In china, the non-working people would be kicked out of their apartments / houses and even put to prison. In Germany, Hitler used more subtle means by telling the masses that Germans must work now to support the military, while the military will conquer the slave countries and make everyone happy and rich (Steep, 138). In all three countries the Totalitarian Methods and Force Are Employed. In Russia, millions of people under Stalin were killed for no reason to scare the populace and make it submissive. In china, that copied the Soviets, also millions of Chinese were killed under Mao rule. In germany, certain cleaning was also deployed yet primarily targeted at the other than german nationalities (Kraut, 54).

The German totalitarianism was marked by Nazism that kept it in opposition with other totalitarian regimes (of Soviets) and contributed to the war against the USSR. Nazism A Specific Type of Fascism as Developed by Hitler in Germany (Kinney, 237) German Nazism Is Decidedly More Blatant in Racist Convictions and Policies, Believing in the Superiority of the So-called "Aryan" Race (Perelman, 84). German Nazism Is Much More Successful in Military and Imperial Objectives Than Italian Fascism (Steep, 141) The Term "Nazi" Is Developed from the First Two Syllables of the German Word in the Formal Name of this Group -- the National (Nah-The-oh-name) Socialist German Workers Party (in German National Deutsches Arbeiten Parti) Nazism was Hitlerism, or the beliefs of Adolf Hitler. He poured these ideas into Mein Kampf. The book was first named A Half Years of Struggle Against Lies, Stupidity, and Cowardice During the heyday of the Totalitarian Communist menace, 1917 - 1991, political theory tended to divide governments the way pictorially represented in the table below: Property Rights Low High Personal Rights High Socialist Free Market Democracy Low Totalitarian Authoritarian In American political discourse of that era, it was generally agree that, yes, free market democracy was good and totalitarianism was bad, but the middle ground was not nearly as clear (Perelman, 88). This authoritarian / socialist grey area therefore was picked up by the parties of USSR and China and used powerful arguments that totalitarianism was bad and authoritarianism was good, and claimed that it was the solution to the Soviet of Chinese problems.

This is what distinguished Communist Russian and Chinese leaders from German Nazis (Kraut, 55). The countries of China, Russian and Nazi Germany artificially bundle Communism and Fascism into a single category called "Totalitarianism" for the purpose of supporting certain ideas of the parties of these countries. While Chinese totalitarianism followed the Russian theory of governance, both Russia and Nazi Germany used different sources to justify their position (Steep, 143). There is no doubt that the works of Nitzshe and Dostoyevsky stood the test of time: the strong influence of these two masters reshaped the systems of Russia and Germany and consequently China (Kinney, 239). These two thinkers are joined together by a very important circumstance: in the middle of the 19 th bourgeois century they predicted the phenomenon of totalitarianism that actually would take place only in the next century as the effort to set the total control over the whole aspects of the human life.

The similarity in the premonition of the totalitarianism by Dostoyevsky and Nitzshe reflects the similarity in the leading development of totalitarian trends in the both countries (Mattingly, 193). One can trace the conceptual connections between the world created by Dostoyevsky and Russian communism, as well as Nitzshe's world is of the same kind with the German national-socialism. Chinese Mao was thought to have built Chinese totalitarian government on the Soviet model (Steep, 146). In conclusion I would like to say that the 20 th century can be marked as the century of totalitarianism.

Totalitarianism is the scourge of our century. It caused the immense sufferings, shook the foundations of culture and humanity and left such spiritual wounds that still keep bleeding. There is no doubt that Russians, Chinese and Germans have much in common not only in political but in spiritual and cultural respect. Probably, the cognation between the countries was caused by the fact that these nations in comparison with other nations of the world were much more influenced and punch-drunk with impetuous invasion of the culture of the Age of Enlightenment and of French Revolution. Bibliography: Kraut, Thomas, The totalitarianism, McGraw Hill, 2002. Steep, Andrew, The authoritarian regime in Europe, Prentice Hall, 2001.

Perelman, Ryan, Chinese governance during Mao time, Penguin books, 2000. Kinney, Diana, The leaders of totalitarianism of the XX century, Oxford University Press, 1999. Mattingly, Steven, Dangers of totalitarianism, Harvard University Press, 2001.

Research essay sample on 20 Th Century Nazi Germany