Summary of Hannah Arendts Ideology and Terror: a Novel Form of Governm

In her excerpt Ideology and Terror A Novel Form of organization from her book The Origins of Totalitarianism, Hannah Arendt reveals that fright is at the core of a totalistic government, and that this terror is based upon ideology. This type of terror exceeds fear. Totalitarianism dominated many governments during the 20th century. Unlike other forms of government that oppress its people a totalitarian form of government escapes the boundaries of definition. A totalitarian government is commonly nonsensical as a tyranny or dictatorship. Arendt explains that this is because it must begin as a tyranny to lift the boundaries of the laws. Arendt uses two particular governments as examples to servicing clarify the nature of a totalitarian government fascist Germany and communistic Russia. According to Arendt, the totalitarianism that rose in Germany was based upon the ideology of racism. It was propagated by Hitler and enforced by the Nazi regime. This form of totalitaria nism led to the last-ditch form of terror human cruelty and death. Arendt compares that in communist Russi...