Totalitarian ideology

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A totalitarian ideology is understood to be an ideology that is the starting point of a totalitarian movement. Classically the ideology of communism and national socialism . There is no generally applicable definition of totalitarian ideology within political science and history. Rather, authors who deal with the phenomenon of totalitarianism give their own definitions, which are quite different.

According to Hannah Arendt , a totalitarian ideology aims at a total explanation of the world. Accordingly, totalitarian ideology promises a total explanation of the past, present and future. A totalitarian ideology is independent of experience, it literally emancipates itself from reality and wants to give reliable predictions about the future.

According to Carl Joachim Friedrich and Zbigniew Brzezinski , a totalitarian ideology contains a program of action that wants to completely destroy an existing society and to build a new one on its ruins. A totalitarian ideology, as a radical system of thought that contains a "corpus of ideas", is to be totally transformed into an existing society. It is ultimately a utopia.

Hans Buchheim assumes that the totalitarian ideology, as the basis of totalitarian rule, represents an absolute rule and raises its "will to the basic law of the whole". The totalitarian ideology is not limited to the state , but permeates the whole of society and accordingly penetrates into people's private lives: family life, religion, church, science and art.

A possible definition within political science is the following:

"A totalitarian ideology is a world view that is characterized by a certain basic or starting idea (eg the choice of a class or 'race'), which is posited as absolute and interprets and explains the entire world. This absolutely posited idea is radically intolerant to all other ideas and worldviews. The totalitarian ideology is characterized by various features and characteristics and has a specific effect on its bearers and a part of the people. Basically, a structural-logical and a content level must be distinguished. The features of the structural- logical level are interrelated and in the interplay they develop their totalitarian effect. Contents, intentions and history can be very different in totalitarian ideology. Conspiracy-theoretical elements are also optional. "

According to this definition, a totalitarian ideology has six main characteristics:

  1. A monocausal initial idea
  2. Messianic self-image
  3. Bipolar friend-foe scheme
  4. Monopoly on truth and knowledge
  5. Unity and uniformity
  6. Fundamental fault.

The main feature of the conspiracy-theoretical worldview can also be added. This characteristic may have a totalitarian ideology, but this is not necessarily the case. While conspiracy-theoretical worldviews only played a limited role in communism, it was an important starting point for the National Socialist perspective.

When combined, the characteristics lead to certain psychological processes and have an important orientation function. The totalitarian ideology has the following effects:

  1. Reduction of the complex reality
  2. Declaration of the whole world
  3. Emancipation from reality
  4. Feeling of moral and universal superiority.

A totalitarian ideology that also includes a conspiracy theory can intensify this effect.

literature

  • Hannah Arendt (1955): Elements and origins of total domination . European Publishing House , Frankfurt am Main 1955, DNB 450134717 .
  • Hans Buchheim (1962): Totalitarian rule. Essence and characteristics . Kösel, Munich 1962 DNB 450666328 .
  • Alexander Fichtner (2019): The logic of totalitarian ideology. Analogous thought structures using the example of communism and national socialism, taking into account the content and intentional peculiarities . Lit Verlag, Berlin / Münster 2019, ISBN 978-3-643-14424-9 .
  • Carl Joachim Friedrich (1957): Totalitarian dictatorship . With the collaboration of Professor Zbigniew K. Brzezinski. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart: 1957, DNB 451377079 .

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Hannah Arendt: Elements and origins of total domination. European Publishing House, Frankfurt am Main, p. 740 .
  2. ^ Carl Joachim Friedrich: Totalitarian dictatorship. Among the collaborators of Professor Zbigniew K. Brzezinski . Kohlhammer, Stuttgart, p. 27 f .
  3. ^ Hans Buchheim: Totalitarian rule. Essence and characteristics . Kösel, Munich.
  4. ↑ Alexander Fichtner: The logic of totalitarian ideology. Analogous thought structures using the example of communism and national socialism, taking into account the content and intentional peculiarities . 1st edition. Lit Verlag, Berlin, Münster, p. 267 .
  5. ↑ Alexander Fichtner: The logic of totalitarian ideology. Analogous thought structures using the example of communism and national socialism, taking into account the content and intentional peculiarities . 1st edition. Lit Verlag, Berlin, Münster, p. 270 .
  6. ↑ Alexander Fichtner: The logic of totalitarian ideology. Analogous thought structures using the example of communism and national socialism, taking into account the content and intentional peculiarities . 1st edition. Lit Verlag, S. 235-266 .
  7. ↑ Alexander Fichtner: The logic of totalitarian ideology. Analogous thought structures using the example of communism and national socialism, taking into account the content and intentional peculiarities . 1st edition. Lit Verlag, Berlin, Münster, p. 271 .