Utopia Or Reign Of Terror (An Analysis Of Totalitarian Government

Utopia or Reign of Terror

(An Analysis of Totalitarian Governments Today according to Arendt’s Ideology and Terror) Totalitarianism is a government in which the leaders have total control over its citizens. Eric Voegelin explains in his analysis of the origins of totalitarianism that, “As far as the institutional aspect of the process is concerned totalitarianism, thus, is the disintegration of national societies and their transformation into aggregates of superfluous human beings.” (Voegelin) Totalitarianism is one of the most questionable and controversial forms of government that there has ever been. While some people think that the idea of totalitarianism government is completely in the past, it is obvious that there are still some of

All of these governments, though, have an aggressive way of forcing what they think is best on the people and using whatever means necessary to eliminate any threats to their reign. There are many totalitarian governments that operate today one the some ideals that Hannah Arendt explains in Ideology and Terror: A Novel Form of Government such as North Korea, Cuba, and Syria. The first and most drastic example of totalitarian government that matches what is explained in Ideology and Terror, by Arendt, is seen in North Korea. The problems in North Korea have been occurring for years. Since their first dictator died, the government has since been passed on to his son, the new dictator Kim Jung-Un. While most of the world was hoping that conditions would improve, it’s obvious that the government is still under totalitarian rule. Glyn Ford gave a perfect analogy for what North Korea has turned

Syria is a great example of the government using fear to control their people. They use drastic fear all the way from a young age to ensure that everyone always follows their rules, in utter fear and hope for betterment. Lloyd Evans perfectly sums up what life is like in Syria from the time kids are at a very young age, “Syria, a Russian sidekick state, still pursues the traditions of Marxist totalitarianism. Every morning, ranks of school kids salute their leader. 'Unity, Freedom, Socialism' they chant in honor of a regime which traduces all three ideals.” (Evans) Syria uses terror to abuse the population of their country. Terror is the only thing that can really make everyone do things that they normally would be horrified about. This execution of fear and abuse is how most totalitarian governments keep control of their populations and maintain their rule. Just as Arendt explains, “Terror as the execution of a law of movement whose ultimate goal is not the welfare of men or the interest of one man but the fabrication of mankind, eliminates individuals for the sake of the species, sacrifices the ‘parts’ for the sake of the ‘whole.’” (Pg. 91) These governments give up the well-being of their people for what they believe is the most important for the whole of the population, though they usually end up being wrong. They are normally pretty aggressive