Patel- #1 partial totalitarianism

1. To what extent did Hitler use totalitarianism to maintain his regime?


Adolf Hitler, leader of Germany from 1934-1939, gained power through completely legal means and by complete consent of the people of Germany. (4) Around 1928, about 97% of the German people rejected the Nazi party. (2) Five years later, this percentage grew to around 37% of the popular vote. (4) Now this percentage then was considered the majority of the vote because of the many existing parties at the time. (4) From this increase in percentage, it can be drawn that Hitler and the Nazi party were voted into power. After Hitler accepted chancellorship, the affect of a new leader in Germany was actually being seen by the people such as, Hitler establishing the Gestapo and the storm troopers to perform Hitler’s dirty work. (3) The Gestapo and the storm troopers were created as true loyal Germans that tended to Hitler, such as eliminating any opponent of the Nazi party. This constitutes many parts of a totalitarian government because Hitler had control over the media and what they could and could not publish, and he had secret police type organizations to use terror amongst the German people. (4) Many decisions and actions that the Nazi party decreed were based on totalitarian concepts, but the entirety of the Nazi rule was mainly a dictatorship by consent.

Many of the decisions made by the Nazi party constituted totalitarian aspects. Such things were the use of propaganda to popularize the Nazi ideology, the control over the media in which they could not publish anything against the Nazi party, the single party rule instead of a network of individuals, the threat of the critical surveillance by anyone who was at all connected by the state, and also terrorism that was created from the Gestapo and the storm troopers. (3) All of these things would represent an ideal totalitarian rule, except the only aspect that would make it a complete totalitarian rule is that the single party rulers would control the economy as well. (4) The exception to the Nazi rule was that some form of capitalism was allowed. (4) The only private enterprise that was allowed was the ones that supported Hitler and the Nazi party. Otherwise, if a private enterprise was withheld and did not show any interest in the Nazi rule then it would be seen that it not for the good of the government and would be eliminated by the storm troopers. Although the themes in the actions of the Nazi party seem to follow totalitarian ideals for the most part, mainly the Nazi rule is interpreted as a dictatorship because the source of the power is from the single party, Nazi party, and they governed as an autocratic type of government.

The affect that the Nazi party had on the German people was also helpful with the promotion of the Nazi ideals. Hitler and the Nazis first appealed to the German people by offering them jobs opportunities and therefore forming better living conditions. (3) This formed a little trust with the Nazi party. Then, because the Germans believed in the existing government the people would have no shame in revealing any outcasts of the community. Anyone against the government would be told to the Gestapo and therefore be placed in concentration camps. The government was for the most part tending to the people’s wants and vice versa. The hysteria amongst the people was fueled by the pride of being a German citizen. This is an example of how the Germans somewhat approved the Nazi party And many people tend to follow the beliefs of the majority of the people because no one likes to be an outcast; which led to the mass support of Hitler and the Nazis. If someone turned in their neighbor then the person turning the other in would feel as they assisted their country and therefore performing a good deed for Germany. This kind of thought subtly created a social class system; German citizens were at the top and the Jewish (“who were against the government”) were on the bottom.

While Hitler and the Nazi party controlled the media, army, the police, and essentially the thoughts of the Germans, the Nazi rule was a dictatorship by the consent of the people. Totalitarianism is a type of government that is not accepted by the common people but the Nazi party was. The totalitarian aspects of the Nazi rule were accepted even though not truly believed because of mass popularity. Although, many Germans truly believed that their lives were improving under the rule of the Nazi party and felt the need to promote pride in their country to see it as a world power in the global community once again.