Totalitarianism and Hannah Arendt

Hannah Arendt (October 14, 1906 – December 4, 1975) can be regarded as one of the leading critics of Totalitarianism.  She was a German philosopher and politician whose theories on the structure of society are important to the present day. In one of her numerous books entitled, The Origins of Totalitarianism which was published in 1951 she outlines the ways in which Totalitarianism takes place and what effects it has on society.

Hannah Arendt speaking about her
political theories

She argues that each individual has their own unique personality, therefore it is impossible to predict what people will do. Everything is possible so people strive to seek as much power as they can as it is unlimited, however this power comes at a huge price as humanity will be destroyed. The methods by which leaders such as Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin gained this power and control was to break down people's individuality using state terror and ideology such as Marxism or Communism. Terror is the most important method as it prevents the masses from rebelling against the government and you are punished for wrong thoughts or appearance. (for example target of the Jews and the master race of blonde hair blue eyed people during the Nazi regime). The combination of terror and ideology breaks down society as there are no laws or authority and people lose their human rights. This idea of giving up rights is similar to the theories of Thomas Hobbes who believed that society will always need a ruler to maintain law and order but consequently humans lose their human rights. People lose their individuality through Ideology but this must be embraced and celebrated and it is the masses who will fuel this ideology as they are weak and vulnerable.  Finally,Arendt believed that there will never be an end to Totalitarianism as it is one endless loop of destruction and there will always be groups in society than can be targeted such as the Jews and the disabled.

Arendt was so interested in the ideas of Totalitarianism that she published another book entitled Eichmann in Jerusalem in 1968which was based around a true story she witnessed in Argentina. Adolf Eichmann was a Nazi fugitive during the Holocaust in the Second World War and was captured by Israeli Secret Service Agents in 1960. He was tried for his crimes against humanity in Jerusalem to show the world that the Holocaust was never forgotten and Arendt sat in the courtroom listening to the trial. Eichmann was sentenced to death for his part in the Holocaust but he defended himself stating that he was simply a law abiding citizen. Arendt believed that his crime was not his status as a Nazi but an inability to think for himself, he simply obeyed the orders of his officers without questioning them. As human beings we make a judgement based on what we believe and in the case of Eichmann he just didn't think about his actions. Everyone should rely on their own personal judgements not what the law states and must be prepared to break laws if it is necessary.  Below is a video of a newsreel which summarises Eichmann's trial