A totalitarian ruler leads a government that maintains complete control over every part of public and private life of the citizens in that country. The economic problems that resulted from World War I and the Depression led people to question whether democratic government could improve their lives. Totalitarian governments appeared to provide a sense of security and offered a strong direction for the future. Both Communism and Fascism used aspects of totalitarianism as part of their governments. In general, both used dictators, only allowed one political party, and denied many individual rights. Police terror was used for control and to get rid of any opposition. Controlling media sources (newspapers, television, radio etc.) with propaganda and limiting what was reported helped influence what people thought. However, Fascism believed in an extreme form of nationalism and pride in the country, while Communism focused on the spread of their beliefs worldwide. Communism did not allow private property and eliminated social classes. Fascism believed that each class had a role to play in society and supported private property. During the 1920s and 1930s, four major totalitarian governments developed – one was Communist, the other three were Fascist. Source: https://splashmans.wikispaces.com/Unit+6+-+The+Interwar+Period The Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin After Vladimir Lenin’s death, Joseph Stalin took power. He wanted to strengthen his power and the Communist state. He used his secret police to stop any riots and arrest or kill anyone who spoke out against him. In 1933, he began the Great Purge to eliminate his political rivals in the Communist Party and the government. He knew that in order to compete with other modern countries, the U.S.S.R. (Soviet Union) needed to fix its economy. He began a series of Five Year Plans to improve the Soviet Union’s industries. Production of steel, coal, and oil increased dramatically, but Stalin set impossibly high production rates. Stalin took control of all privately owned farms and began a program of collectivization. Hundreds of families worked the collective farms to produce food for the country. Many landowners and peasants resisted by destroying fields and killing their cattle and sheep. Millions died as a result of famine from the damages and also attacks by the secret police to stop the rebellions. By the mid-1930s Stalin changed the Soviet Union into a totalitarian state and made it into an industrial power.
