During totalitarian leadership, many control tactics are used to maintain power. Whether it is censorship, revised history, terror, or propaganda, these tactics ensure that the dictator remains in power. I believe the three most important tactics are propaganda, censorship, and terror. The most effective is terror, because fear can make people completely change who they are as people to stay alive. If you can control what people are afraid of, you can control almost every aspect of their lives. One of the simplest ways of controlling a society is by propaganda. By surrounding your civilians with pro-leader artwork and media, you can eventually convince the people that totalitarianism is actually for their benefit. Using propaganda to sway people’s opinions on the government takes away their human right to chose who and what they stand for. The change in propaganda shows how the dictator’s power increased over time. By looking at posters from the early 1940’s, when Stalin was starting to gain power, and looking at posters from the early to mid-1950’s, when Stalin was in total command, you can very easily see the differences. In the 1940’s propaganda, Stalin is usually pictured with a group of people, symbolizing the new government as a whole. In the 1950’s propaganda, Stalin is usually pictured with no one else, showing that he has become a totalitarian dictator, to be the only leader honored by the country. You can see that the propaganda started out in favor of the general government, but eventually became in favor of the singular leader. In 1984, you don’t see as many early forms of propaganda, but you can tell that now, the people are surrounded by pro – Big Brother propaganda. Even when Winston is at home, he is still surroun... ... middle of paper ... ...on’t know what will happen to them. The fear is worse than the actual punishment. I believe that terror is the most important control tactic because it directly affects the most human rights. Censorship and propaganda take away a few rights, but terror has the ability to take every single human right. The obvious affect on happiness when your human rights are taken away is that you have neither freedom nor security. You are left with nothing but fear. All in all, taking human rights away by terror is the most effective, yet cruelest way of maintaining power in a totalitarian government. You take the most from people, but you get the most power. This is a main reason why group security is more important than individual freedom. When you are guaranteed safety, you can find happiness within yourself. If all you have is freedom, there is no way of ensuring your safety.
The establishment and success of both the USSR and Nazi Germany are largely due to one common factor. The attributes of Stalin and Hitler enabled them to successfully gain and maintain complete control over their government and enforce total rule to establish the party superiority. Schlesinger describes leadership as the ability to “move, inspire, and mobilize masses of people so that they act together in pursuit of an end” (Schlesinger 1). Stalin and Hitler themselves as individuals and leaders are as infamous and complex as the ruthless totalitarian governments they implemented. Being on polar opposite...
A dictator is a ruler with total power over a country, typically one who has obtained power by force, and generally not liked by the community. The major dictators of the 20th century left an infamous legacy behind them, all using similar tactics during their reign. Mussolini, dictator of Italy from 1922 to 1942, used his power to abolish all other political parties in Italy, thus making him superior. Hitler gained dictatorship in the 1930’s. In that time, he purged opposition and used his newly confiscated power to create his definition of superior humans, annihilating entire groups due to them not meeting his criteria for appropriate human value. Stalin exterminated millions who opposed them and expelled all free expression. The leaders had similar rises to power and methods of that assumed power.
A totalitarian government controls every aspect of their citizens' lives and the use of close monitoring and threats of war in Soviet Russia, North Korea, and Oceania are tools used to control the citizens.
... towards the enemies of the government helps fear remain an effective governing force. An example today of a totalitarian regime that uses fear to control is Iraq. The leader Saddam Hussein gained his power and maintains his regime by performing brutal acts to his enemies to instill fear in his population. The fear and oppression he places on his people make thousands of them support religious ideals. During his presidential election Saddam received a hundred percent of the population votes in his favor. The majority of the Iraqis that voted for Saddam would vote against him if they did not fear Saddam's secret police. Lastly in Iraq people are paranoid to speak out against the government because of fear of punishment and death by the secret police. Since Iraq is a totalitarian government run by fear the people will only become more untrustworthy and isolated.
Therefore, just like under any other totalitarian government, social, mental and economic freedoms are abolished in order to retain social stability. The government eliminated these freedoms by censoring art and religion, by predestining peoples’ social caste prior their birth, and by controlling each individual’s life with the introduction of conditioning.
As we progress deeper into the digital era, we rely more and more on our electronic devices. Over the last decade, almost everyone who lives in a developed nation owns a cellphone and they are becoming an integral part of our life.
Many people throughout the world do not realize how their right to privacy is at risk and the need to understand that it is very important, more than they think. Most people in society do not realize that it is a bigger issue than what it sounds to be. As many of you may know the 14th amendment has been involved in many cases that had to do with the right to privacy. This amendment to the constitution guarantees us the right to privacy, but what does this mean? This paper is an attempt to show how the right to privacy is applied in public, in the workplace and in the home.
Our nation seems as if it is in a constant battle between freedom and safety. Freedom and security are two integral parts that keep our nation running smoothly, yet they are often seen conflicting with one another. “Tragedies such as Pearl Harbor, 9/11 and the Boston Marathon bombings may invoke feelings of patriotism and a call for unity, but the nation also becomes divided, and vulnerable populations become targets,” (Wootton 1). “After each attack a different group or population would become targets. “The attack on Pearl Harbor notoriously lead to Japanese Americans being imprisoned in internment camps, the attacks on 9/11 sparked hate crimes against those who appeared to be Muslim or Middle Eastern,” (Wootton 1). Often times people wind up taking sides, whether it be for personal freedoms or for national security, and as a nation trying to recover from these disasters we should be leaning on each other for support. Due to these past events the government has launched a series of antiterrorist measures – from ethnic profiling to going through your personal e-mail (Begley 1). Although there are times when personal freedoms are sacrificed for the safety of others, under certain circumstances the government could be doing more harm than good.
The attacks on American soil that solemn day of September 11, 2001, ignited a quarrel that the grade of singular privacy, need not be given away in the hunt of grander security. The security measures in place were planned to protect our democracy and its liberties yet, they are merely eroding the very existence with the start of a socialistic paradigm. Benjamin Franklin (1759), warned more than two centuries ago: “they that can give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Implementing security measures comes at a cost both economically and socially. Government bureaucrats can and will utilize information for personal political objectives. The Supreme Court is the final arbitrator of what the ‘law is”, causing a lack of circulated rule. The actual leaders with political purposes jeopardize our individual privacy rights, liberties, and freedoms.
Ever since day one, people have been developing and creating all sorts of new methods and machines to help better everyday life in one way or another. Who can forget the invention of the ever-wondrous telephone? And we can’t forget how innovative and life-changing computers have been. However, while all machines have their positive uses, there can also be many negatives depending on how one uses said machines, wiretapping in on phone conversations, using spyware to quietly survey every keystroke and click one makes, and many other methods of unwanted snooping have arisen. As a result, laws have been made to make sure these negative uses are not taken advantage of by anyone. But because of how often technology changes, how can it be known that the laws made so long ago can still uphold proper justice? With the laws that are in place now, it’s a constant struggle to balance security with privacy. Privacy laws should be revised completely in order to create a better happy medium between security and privacy. A common misconception of most is that a happy medium of privacy and security is impossible to achieve. However, as well-said by Daniel Solove, “Protecting privacy doesn’t need to mean scuttling a security measure. Most people concerned about the privacy implications of government surveillance aren’t arguing for no[sic] surveillance and absolute privacy. They’d be fine giving up some privacy as long as appropriate controls, limitations, oversight and accountability mechanisms were in place.”(“5 Myths about Privacy”)
The book “1984” by George Orwell is a fictional work that was penned as a discourse on Orwell’s views of what it would be like to live in a totalitarianism society. It is my belief that his views were based on his personal life experiences as he witnessed first hand many of the violent crimes perpetuated by those in positions of authority. Often, these crimes against one segment of society were carried out by other members of the same society in the name of political advancement or at other times out of fear for one’s life. Due to his experiences, Orwell began to write of his hatred of political power and the concept of a totalitarianism society. “1984” serves as a warning to readers of how a government can become abusive when seeking total control of it’s population. Furthermore, it showcases in great detail how a society can allow itself to be controlled through a series of psychological abuses and manipulation of historical information.
Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers of the United States, once said “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” In America’s society today, some are willing to sacrifice their civil liberties in order to gain protection and security over some potential threat. Especially after the events of September 11th and several attempted bombings in U.S. cities. This sacrifice of individual freedoms such as the freedom of speech, expression, the right to information, to new technologies, and so forth, for additional protection is more of a loss than a gain. Citizens of the United States deserve equal liberty and safety overall, as someone should not have to give up one value in order to gain another. This concept of individual right goes beyond the simple idea of “individual comfort.” Personal liberties cannot be surrendered and are not to be compromised since these liberties are intangible. Individuals should not have their personal liberties exchanged for national security because individuals are guaranteed protection to these rights.
James Madison once said “Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.” To gain a better understanding of a society, one must gain knowledge of the needs and wants the citizens’ demand from the country’s representatives. In every country the needed to protect its citizens is the same. In some nations, security is a higher priority which causes sacrifices to be made to obtain an indefinite protection against all rivals. In Peter Singer’s essay titled “Visible Man: Ethics in a World without Secrets” he states that there is a way that governments can collect information by using technology; to allow more ‘openness’ and exposure as an increase of unknown surveillance that the public is not aware of. Singer’s essay also talks about how also with the rise of secrecy within politics; organizations such as ‘WikiLeaks’ and ‘Anonymous’ reveal to the world what is really going on within their privacy. Benefits come from both sides in a world where surveillance exists to the highest priority with or without privacy.
The book 1984, written by George Orwell, focuses on a man named Winston Smith. Winston lives in a society where citizens are taught to hate each other and children are told to betray their parents. Fear is a part of every person’s daily lives and as if that was not enough, citizens are kept busy for the entire day so that thoughts of rebellion or things other than their leader “Big Brother” are kept at bay. If a person is to go against the rules set forth by “Big Brother” and his party then torture or worse would be implemented. This novel, written by George Orwell clearly displays how to maintain a thriving totalitarian society.
Dictators of totalitarian states use terror and violence to force obedience and to crush opposition. Normally, the police are expected to respond to criminal activity and protect the citizens. In a totalitarian state, the police serve to enforce the central gover...