Euro Civ.
Spring 2005
Heubeck

The Rise of Totalitarianism

Directions:
Using your Perry book, complete the following questions.


1. Where did Fascism emerge after World War I?



2. What did these respective movements share?


3. What three conditions fostered the rise of fascism? Explain why Perry thinks these three are the key.


4. Why was fascism so attractive to people? How is this movement an extension of Nietzsche?


5. How is totalitarianism different from absolute monarchies of the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries?


6. Perry says that totalitarianism could have only occurred in the 20th century. Why does he make this assertion?


7. Why is totalitarianism the “antithesis” of liberal democracy?


8. Why was the Soviet Union considered a totalitarian form of government?


9. Of all the condition needed for a totalitarian style government, what is the most essential? Explain why.
 

10. What is the greater goal of the totalitarian leader?


11. Historians often argue that Mussolini, Stalin, and Hitler created a “cult of personality.” Explain what this means.

 

12. Why would it make perfect sense for Stalin to ban organized religion in the Soviet Union given what his goals are as a totalitarian leader?


13. Perry discusses each leader’s desire to promote a cause that claimed absolute goodness. What were these causes in

Germany

Italy


Soviet Union



14. Conversely, each of these three leaders provided a Devil. What was the devil in

Germany


Italy

Soviet Union





Heubeck, Rob. "The Rise of Totalitarianism- Perry Questions," (2005) Between the Wars [core] Class Material