In her book, Twilight of Democracy: The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism, Anne Applebaum delves into the history of authoritarianism and the conditions that promote it today. She explains how countries now have the conditions that promote authoritarianism, how clercs and new forms of media contribute to these conditions, and how conditions in the United States parallel those of some authoritarian states. Applebaum starts by discussing the conditions for authoritarianism that have been seen in a variety of countries across the world. Applebaum states that around a third of a country’s population has an “authoritarian predisposition.” Authoritarianism appeals to those who are scared of complexity and change. Since they have a fear of people …show more content…
Although I have not experienced this myself, the idea is visible in today’s political climate. Many far-right Americans are concerned about LGBTQ marriage, cultural differences, and immigration. It is clear from looking at social media that many people on both sides of the political spectrum are falling into this train of thought. They seem as if they want to “restore” America to a perfect time that never quite existed; a time that the Republican party’s vision promises. The most important figures in the structure of authoritarianism are people who Applebaum calls “clercs.” These clercs, “use sophisticated legal language. [and] argue that breaking the constitution or twisting the law is the right thing to do.” (Applebaum 16) In other words, they need loyal members to justify the takeover of an authoritarian regime by manipulating the public to think that the leaders are justified in their actions. These people are highly skilled in public relations, educated, effectively manipulative, and have media …show more content…
These theories “explain away complex phenomena. [and] offer the believer the satisfying sense of having special, privileged access to the truth.” (Applebaum 45) This also gives the party tremendous power; the more people believe a party’s rhetoric, the more fearful they become, and the more willing they are to support the party that campaigns on “fixing” these fictitious issues. I have seen these tactics used in American media. Former President Trump and his allies have directly spread conspiracy theories and spewed harmful rhetoric across many social media platforms such as Twitter and Instagram, as well as on live television. They also make excuses to justify their behavior, citing their conspiracies as the basis of their questionable decisions. For this reason, our new media platforms play an important role in authoritarian regimes. Because of new social media sites such as Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram, among countless others, people now have access to more information faster than ever before. As of January 2024, 97% of Americans over the age of 18 have a smartphone of some kind, and I would imagine that the rates of smartphone ownership are similar in many other countries as
and Altemeyer’s approaches to authoritarianism share many similarities, such as the more descriptive approach to their work than explanatory route, where neither clearly identify the source of authoritarianism. (Jones, 2002. Cited in The Open University, 2015, p50)
As rational individuals, we do certain things that are beneficial towards us as we are individuals who are self interested. We can also stand up for things we believe in since we have the right. In the film “This is what democracy looks like”, we witness non-violent protestors who are protesting against the WTO and are being stripped of their right of freedom of speech and freedom of association just because the state has a problem with the type of protest that is occurring. Non-violent protestors are being arrested during the WTO meeting without a causal reason. I will argue that the state did not follow the criminal justice system’s liberal principles properly and by looking at the actions of the state against the citizens, citizens were stripped of their liberty and rights. On one hand the citizens are
This section was given in order to show why conspiracy theories are appealing to the average person and how anybody can create one. Next, research data on the general personality and mental state of conspiracy theorists was introduced with believers being more likely to be cynical and have low self-worth (Koerth-Baker 343). Afterward a brief explanation is given on the amygdala, a part of the brain which activates after fear is felt, and how it is crucial to the creation of the various theories we have today. There has also been research showing a correlation between theorizing and strong support of democratic principles due to the fact that conspiracy theories wouldn’t exist without real conspiracies coming to light (Koerth-Baker 344). Then, Koerth begins to talk about how an abundance of available knowledge on the internet has made destroying conspiracy theories even more difficult due to the constant use of confirmation bias. In 2006 scientists discovered an event called the “backfire effect” where any attempts to debunk a theory makes it more popular to the people, but the effect seems more noticeable when it supports a worldview or ideology (Koerth-Baker
The face of American democracy is deceptive; from missionary trips to military tours, America has established a presence in the Middle East, and has always projected itself to be the perfect image of a democratic and free nation where everyone is equal. While America tries to up hold their motto of being the land of the free, American media has presented Arabs as unintelligent and violent people. Because of the way America presents itself to the rest of the world, one would be surprised if they traveled to America only to find violence and ignorance amongst its government and citizens. While Western civilization believes itself to be on a higher level than Eastern civilization, this orientalist view blinds America from seeing the similarities
Although the United States has been celebrated as a pioneering democracy, the nation’s constitution formulates a system of government that deviates from purely democratic principles. That is, when assessing the intentions of the framers, the Constitution’s calculated deviations from an absolute popular rule establishes a system of governance in which the security of American liberties is prioritized. Moreover, by examining the nuances of the Constitution from the framers’ lenses, the divergence from purely democratic ideals becomes all the more apparent. However, despite paving the road for democracies to come, emerging democracies around the world have broken away from the American system of governance outlined by the constitution through
Imagine a society in which its citizens have forfeited all personal liberties for government protection and stability; Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, explores a civilization in which this hypothetical has become reality. The inevitable trade-off of citizens’ freedoms for government protection traditionally follows periods of war and terror. The voluntary degradation of the citizens’ rights begins with small, benign steps to full, totalitarian control. Major methods for government control and censorship are political, religious, economic, and moral avenues. Huxley’s Brave New World provides a prophetic glimpse of government censorship and control through technology; the citizens of the World State mimic those of the real world by trading their personal liberties for safety and stability, suggesting that a society similar to Huxley’s could exist outside the realm of dystopian science fiction.
Many countries believe that propaganda helps to institute a necessary level of patriotism in their citizens. Most authoritarian governments, the type of government that Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell illustrates, use propaganda. However, the use of propaganda also limits the freedom of people since propaganda can control thought and speech. Propaganda can influence people to believe that their country is the best country by either exaggerating the positive events that are happening in their country or by showing negative events that are happening in other countries. Nineteen Eighty-Four is more about the dangers of the government controlling people’s thoughts by propaganda than the dangers of an authoritarian government system.
The post- American world coming in to view is not a Wilsonian world; a world where there is democracy, peace, and free market (Mandelbaum, 2002), but rather a Hobbesian world. A world based on anarchy, in which there is a struggle for big power; Thucydides wrote that “the strong do what they can and the weak put up with what they must (Seau, 2013).” What has unfolded in this post- American world is not a Wilsonian platform, with views of democracy and freedom, but rather what is presently unfolding is pure chaos and a power tug of war. This paper sets out to explore why the post- American world that is shaping up, and why it is not a Wilsonian world, but rather a Hobbesian world- using examples from several scholars, who explored the loss of culture, fear baiting, and economic and military holdings.
Many countries have decided against having a totalitarian government system, but there still are countries that continue with running their country with authoritarianism. The Middle East persists on having an authoritarianism style government over having a democracy. Theories that prove to be true to Middle Eastern people of how a totalitarian government is better relate to economics, religion, and international involvement. People living in the Middle East want to avoid having political liberation because that can lead to a consistent and stable democratic government. Another reason keeping them from changing is that since their countries aren’t struggling economically, the citizens don’t see it necessary to elect new leaders. The countries in the Middle East region decide to continue with authoritarianism because the fear and pain is greater than the feeling of freedom.
For a historian, the 20th century and all the historic events that it encompasses represents a utopia with endless sources of inspiration for the analysis of political figures, events and their consequences. Political figures such as Benito Mussolini of Italy, Adolf Hitler of Germany, Mao Zedong of China and Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union are all names we are familiar with due to the time period that they influenced; this time period after the trauma and atrocities of World War I and the Great Depression led to completely new forms of government in Europe and beyond. These “manifestations of political evil”, commonly known as totalitarian states, should not be considered as mere extensions of already existing political systems, but rather as completely new forms of government built upon terror and ideological fiction. Therefore, this was also a time in which political philosophers such as Hannah Arendt, the author of the standard work on totalitarianism, “Origins of Totalitarianism”, could thrive. When looking at totalitarianism as a political philosophy, two initial questions have to be dealt with: what is totalitarianism and what kind of effect it has on countries ruled by totalitarian regimes.
In an authoritarian regime there are two kinds of people having their feet stick to the power, the soft-liner and the hardliners both groups present different chemistry in an authoritarian regime. More specifically the authors of the book identify these two groups as “duros” hardliners and blandos as soft-liners. The duros or hardliners are the ones who still believe that continuation of the authoritarian regimes in some cases are possible by ignoring and rejecting democratic reforms. In an authoritative regime these hardliners are composed of various fictions and layers and cling to the idea of position of authoritarian for various purpose and reasons. Some adopt this position to maintain and keep their positions
In his paper ‘What is art?’ (1897), Tolstoy states that art is not the mere expression of beauty or emotion; it provides no pleasure nor is that its sole purpose. Art is not an opportunity for catharsis or an activity to occupy the minds of idle beings. Instead, "art is a human activity consisting in this, that one consciously, by means of certain external signs, hands on others feelings he has lived through and that other people are infected by these feelings also experience them" (Tolstoy). In essence, the concept of art is an artist’s depiction of morality based on experience. Tolstoy’s essay on art sparked quite the reaction from the public because it openly criticized some of the world’s most renowned artists and completely disputed common beliefs regarding art. In this essay Tolstoy’s definition is analyzed through an empirical lens in an attempt to expose the incongruity of Tolstoy’s definition of art
Authoritarian style governments come in different forms and apply varying amounts of violence when enforcing their rule. People who live in democratic style governments often do not understand why people accept living in an authoritarian state, forgetting that in fact the authoritarian form of government is the oldest form of government on earth. A dictatorship government is one type of authoritarian government that gains world attention most notably by the extreme violence used to control their citizens. This paper will review authoritarianism; why humans put up with it; traits of paranoid, narcissistic, and charismatic personalities; and highlight Idi Amin Dada as a case in point.
The term totalitarianism describes a government that takes total, centralized, state control over every aspect of public and private life. Totalitarian leaders appear to provide a sense of security and to give a direction for the future. In the 20th century, the widespread use of mass communication made it possible to reach into all aspects of citizens’ lives. A dynamic leader who can build support for his policies and justify his actions heads most totalitarian governments. Often the leader utilizes secret police to crush opposition and create a sense of fear among the people. Totalitarianism challenges the highest values prized by Western democracies about reason, freedom, human dignity, and the worth of the individual. All totalitarian states share basic characteristics. To dominate an entire nation, totalitarian leaders devised methods of control and persuasion like the use of terror, indoctrination, propaganda, censorship, and religious or ethnic persecution.
Zakaria, F. (2007). The Future of Freedom: Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad (Revised Edition). New York: W. W. Norton.