Knowledge Connections

Definition

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TermVocabulary Censorship Media

Essential Question

What are the characteristics of a totalitarian government?

What was Europe like in the 1930s?

By 1939, only two European countries were still a democracy

Great Britain France

Nation after nation had fallen to TOTALITARIANISM….

What was happening?

Totalitarian governments were:

• Increasing the power of their governments

• Controlling the lives of their citizens

• Reshaping their society

• Conquering new lands

• Starting conflicts

Their actions were setting the stage for another world war…

What makes a totalitarian government?

#1 – Leadership by a single person or group

Nazi Party in Germany

Communist Party in the Soviet Union

What makes a totalitarian government?

#2 – Rejection of personal rights and freedoms

• Opposing democratic forms of government

• Limiting the power of the people

What makes a totalitarian government?

#3 – Relying on propaganda and censorship

• Influencing public opinion

• Banning anything critical of the government

What makes a totalitarian government?

#4 – Using terror to enforce orders

• Having secret police groups

• Demanding complete obedience

What are some examples of totalitarian governments?

Germany under Adolf Hitler

• (SS) – Secret police force

• Control of the media

• Death camps

Italy under Benito Mussolini

• Secret police force

• Imprisonment

• Censorship of the Press

Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin

• Prison Camps

• Government run newspapers

• Secret police force

Essential Question

What are the characteristics of a totalitarian government?

Totalitarian Governments

Leadership

RightsPolicies

Media