Ideologies of Major WWII Combatants

4/2/2020

Answer the following questions for each of the ideologies in competition during WWII.
a) Fascism (Italy)
b) Nazism (Germany)
c) Communism (USSR)
d) Democratic Socialism (France and Britain / USA)
e) Authoritarian of the Radical Right (Japanese)

1. Who was/were the human leader(s)?
2. How did they assumed power?
3. What was the political party / ideology's ultimate goal?
4. Was propaganda used on their population? Was it successful?
5. Create a list of virtues, held beliefs, and principles associated with each ideology.

9 Comments

Kid

4/5/2020 04:49:01 pm

1) Benito Mussolini was the leader for Facism in Italy starting in 1919
2) He rose to power because Italy was in political chaos and he told the people that he would put an end to the corruption if they gave him power. This led to the people going against the king and the king had no choice but to give power to Benito because he didn’t want a civil war.
3) The ultimate goal for the fascist party was to create a single party dictatorship to control the economic state and to get the people’s loyalty to the state. Its goal was also to expand its territories because they thought they were superior to other cultures.
4) Yes Benito did use propaganda on the nation and it was successful because they supported Musollini and they were blindly loyal to their nation because he made them feel pride for their country(nationalism).
5) Fascists promised a stable government and to bring order, control the economic state, and bring national pride to the people of the nation. Fascists believed warfare was good, reason and logic wasn’t needed, and blindly follow Benito because he is always right. Their principles were strict but the people didn’t question it because they would be killed if they did, they had strict censorships, only the strong survive type of nation; they didn’t value the individual, you don’t question the state and you have to be loyal to it.

1) Adolf Hitler was the leader of Nazism.
2) Hitler rose to power by getting rid of the communists and everyone who opposed his ideas and he told the people that he would fix the problems Germany had. Germany also had a weak government and there were small groups fighting for power which led to Hitler seizing power because they needed someone with strong leadership and since Hitler was a charismatic speaker with good leadership he took power.
3) The ultimate goal of Nazism was to create a dictatorship and bring national pride to all the people of Germany so they think they are the superior race. Its main goal was to get rid of other races and cease territory for themselves since they are superior.
4) Yes Hitler did use propaganda and it was successful because he made the people of Germany believe that they were the superior race and that they should kill the other races because they were below them and because they needed territory from them.
5) Nazism wanted to prevent socialism, created jobs for unemployed Germans, and they built up the military. They believed that they were the superior race and that the rest were inferior to them, they believed in nationalism and that warfare was good. Nazism had strict censorships like burning books, making religion illegal, rewrote history, and rejected jazz because it was from Africans. They suspended people’s civil rights and rejected the treaty of Versailles, executed nazis who weren’t loyal to their nation, and banned jews from education, holding government jobs, practicing law or medicine, etc…

1) Joseph Stalin was the communist leader of the Russian Soviet Union.
2) Joseph Stalin came to power by a coup and the soviet union was weared out from the war they had to get rid of the last Tsar and Joseph took power by force with his military.
3) Stalin’s main goal for the Soviet Union was for it to become industrialized and militarized, he wanted to make a functioning Soviet Union for the proletariat, so everyone could be equal.
4) Yes,Joseph Stalin used propaganda and he was successful because he won the support of the people even though he was a dictator. He used statues and pictures to promote himself and his ideas, as well as his party to win the support of the people. THe USSR made schools for the youth to support the communism ideology instead of going against Stalin’s ideas and his reign of terror.
5) Communism helped everyone be equal by taking away ranks and classes. Communism believes that if they take away the power of the bourgeoisie they can make everyone equal and establish worker control of means of production, they believe that capitalism is evil, and community rights more than individual rights. Communism also has principles that help everyone be equal by getting rid of class and by making everyone share the same property and by letting people control the economy and no one should have private ownership of a property because it encourages greed.

1) Winston Churchill for Great Britain and Frank D. Roosevelt for America were the leaders for democratic socialism.
2) Winston Churchill came to power because Britain needed help against the fight with Germany in the war and the parliament assigned him as prime minister because they needed his type of leadership at that time. The public supported Churchill because he was in the army and they thought his leadership would be needed to win against Germany. Frank D. Roosevelt came to power because of the great depression and because he told the people that he can solve the problem if they make him presiden

Kid

4/5/2020 04:51:29 pm

He was loved by the nation and he won support from everyone because he fixed the great depression crisis and the massive unemployment the Americans had by creating new jobs and public work.
3) Democratic socialism’s goal was to make everyone equal and to ensure natural human rights for the people, to make sure everyone is seen as equal and have the same equal rights, they want to make a government that is stable and acceptable by everyone.
4) Yes, during World War 2 both America and Britain used propaganda to get more people to join the army. America used posters and cartoons to make people join the army and fight; this was very successful because Americans joined and supported the war and they were also helped by other things. Comics and Shows were aimed at young children to let them see who the bad guy was to promote nationalism and it also helped the democratic socialism party get their ideas across and win the support of the people. The British used their propaganda to encourage people to join the army, go to factories and make raw materials so they can be used in the war and help the soldier, ration their food so they can have more food for the soldiers. They used their propaganda to increase the support of the war and commitment to an allied victory.
5) Democratic socialism helps people secure their natural rights, elect the people they want to represent them and lead, makes everyone have equal rights, and get rid of censorship. Democrataic socialism believes that capitalism is bad, they believe that an educated population is a great prevention against a bad government and a bad country,and they also believe that everyone should have the same equal rights. The principles of democratic socialism is to not interfere with anyone else’s rights, there should be checks and balances in government powers, leaders should be elected by the people, and everyone should be seen as equals.

1) I couldn’t really find a leader for the japanese authoritarian but the closest I could find was Hideki Tojo even though he wasn’t emperor it seemed like he called the shots.
2) Hideki Tojo came to power because he was in the military and because the parliament couldn’t withstand the economic and political pressures during the great depression and that made the nation militarized. Japan increased in military leaders and Hideki took control from that.
3) The main goal was to expand their territory and create a dictatorship like Germany and Russia did. Hideki’s goal was to get power and pull the strings so the world can see that the emperor doesn’t have power, he just look like he does.
4) Japan used propagandas to make the Americans look bad and that they had a reason to attack Pearl Harbor. They made it look like Americans threatened Japan first so that is why they attacked. They wanted to make the Americans lose hope, make it look like they already won the war, convince the occupied countries what kind of good things they would get if they invaded Asia.
5) Authoritarianism is used to centralize power by maintaining political repression, it uses political parties to control people and achieve their goals. They believe that the west is bad and that they should be invaded by them, they have pride in their country(nationalism), they believed military is more dominant, there shouldn’t be a lot of free expression, and they believed that capitalism and democracy wouldn’t help their country.

Antonio Marquez

4/12/2020 04:31:22 pm

A) Fascism
1.The leader of Fascism was Benito Mussolini
2.Mussolini assumed power by taking advantage of the political issues occurring in Italy after WWI. He even promised that he would stabilize Italy and was then named Prime Minister. (elected)
3.Fascism’s goal was to rule with a single party dictatorship by controlling everyone and for the people in the state to be loyal to them.
4.Yes, Mussolini used propaganda on the nation and it was successful because the people stayed loyal to him, no questions asked because of how he made them feel about their country.
5.Beliefs- Nationalism, military force, one party dictatorship, and censorship

B) Nazism
1.The leader of Nazism was Adolf Hitler.
2.He got his power by taking advantage of the current unstable government of Germany, which made people angry and promising them stability and prosperity. (Elected)
3.Pretty similar to Fascism’s goal, Nasism’s goal was the way of having a dictatorship with strict control over government and economy. Although they also promoted racism and race superiority.
4.Yes, Hitler used propaganda and it was successful. These can be examined by how the people of Germany believe that they were superior and that everyone else deserves to be killed.
5.Beliefs- Anti-semitism, blamed ethnic groups and Jews for their problems, national pride, no civil rights, complete obedience/dictatorship, and destruction of all inferior races.

C) Communism
1.The leader of Communism was Joseph Stalin.
2.Stalin gained his power and was elected the leader of the Communist party after the former leader Lenin died.
3.The goal of Communism was to create political and social fairness to the people living in Russia. To create a place where everyone is equal. Although they also wanted to spread communism worldwide with violent revolutions.
4.Yes, Stalin used propaganda and was successful because he had everybody’s loyalty.
5.Beliefs- create a stateless, classless society, this can happen by taking away power of the bourgeoisie.

D) Democratic Socialism
1.Winston Churchill was the leader of Great Britain and Franklin D. Roosevelt was the leader of the USA.
2.Winston Churchill gained his power and was elected his nation’s Prime Minister at it’s darkest time and became the leader of the fight against Germany. Roosevelt gained his power when he won the presidential election in 1932 defeating Herbert Hoover “ in a landslide.”
3.The goal of democratic socialism was to give everyone equal rights. The government would also create ways for people to get a chance to have some success in a capitalist system.
4.Yes, propaganda was used and was successful.The U.S used posters and fake news to influence its soldiers, citizens, and even their enemies. For Britain, the America propaganda showed the war as an issue of good versus evil. This allowed the government to encourage its population to fight a “just war.
5.Beliefs- opportunity, equality, and to meet the needs of the people.

E) Authoritarian of the Radical Right (Japanese)
1.The leader is Shinzo Abe.
2.Abe gained his power from being in a family with a lot of political power and later received a position in the government.
3.To create a system that is characterized by a strong central power and limited political freedoms.
4.Propaganda used to undermine American soldiers and to make them look bad. They wanted it to look like Japan was better than the American way.
5.Beliefs- Limited political pluralism, political legitimacy, minimal political mobilization, and ill-defined executive powers.

Sherer

4/14/2020 09:38:24 am

Kid and Antonio, what exceptional work. Obviously, some patterns start to develop. Hope the material provided made it an interesting unit to learn? Do you have any remaining questions or are you interested in learning anything more from this unit ?

Kid

4/14/2020 11:51:30 am

The unit was interesting but I was a little confused on the Japanese Authoritarianism

Sherer

4/15/2020 07:59:30 am

Out textbook doesn't cover it too well, but if you hop over to the AP section, there is more on it if you are interested. It is the most unlike the others, basically a radical authoritarian political party, with influence over monopolies and the military, began to influence and then ultimately direct the Japanese government itself. No Hitler or Stalin figure despite the Emperor still having "power."

Robert Joseph Jordan

4/16/2020 03:20:24 pm

A). Fascism (Italy)
1. Benito Mussolini.
2. Mussolini assumed power by utilizing violence. He created “combat squads” consisting of his supporters, and effectively scared off all politicians. There was also an event where thousands of Fascists swarmed the capital of Italy, forcing King Victor to ask Mussolini to create a government where he is the leader.
3. The ultimate goal of Fascism is to practice extreme nationalism, and to expand across foreign lands.
4. Yes, propaganda was used on the population. Men were changed to be ruthless soldiers, women were changed to be better mothers, and children were raised to be tough and disciplined, which was perfect for making soldiers that would help expand Italy.
5. Extreme nationalism is a basic part of Fascism. Fascism favored violence, discipline, and blind loyalty. Fascists hated many other ideologies, including democracy, socialism, and communism.

B). Nazism (Germany)
1. Adolf Hitler.
2. The results of the Great Depression helped Hitler rise to power a lot. Since the Great Depression made a lot of people lose their finances, and Hitler’s program appealed to the poor and middle-class populations, his support grew tremendously. The government was also damaged at the time, so he and many Nazis were able to easily take high power positions.
3. The ultimate goal of Nazism is to purify Germany, and eliminate all outside influences.
4. Yes, propaganda was used on the population. It was successful in convincing Germans to become soldiers, and to create a bad image for the Jewish population. Schools were used to teach children to think like Nazis.
5. Nazism said that Germans were the best race among all others in the world. Nazism affected ALL parts of people's daily lives and not just some like other ideologies and religions. The ideology also encouraged merciless violence, racism, and antisemitism.

C). Communism (USSR)
1. Joseph Stalin.
2. Stalin came to power when he took the position after the death of former leader Vladimir Lenin. Stalin was able to get his supporters into good jobs, and eliminate the competition he had.
3. The ultimate goal of Communism is to create a society that is equal, where no one has more power than anyone else.
4. Yes, propaganda was used. It helped Stalin come to power in the first place by eliminating Trotsky from becoming leader, and then later helped him further grow his support.
5. The goal of communism is said to be achieved by taking away power from the people who own means to production. Communism says things should be done for the better of the entire population, and not for specific individuals. Along with that, communism was all for community rights over individual rights.

D). Democratic Socialism (France, Britain/USA)
1. Franklin Roosevelt for USA, Winston Churchill for Britain.
2. Roosevelt was simply elected president of the US, and Winston Churchill was appointed as the prime minister of Britain by King George the 6th.
3. The ultimate goal is to give everyone a fair share of their needs, and prevent some people from becoming very rich or very poor.
4. Yes, propaganda was used. It was used to recruit more people into fighting for their country, and to let others know about what is happening in the war.
5. There should be a limit to how much property one person can own. The government should help keep the economy in check. People should be helped financially as they need it.

E). Authoritarian of the Radical Right (Japan)
1. Michinomiya Hirohito was the emperor of Japan at the time.
2. Hirohito took over after his father passed away.
3. The ultimate goal was to convert Japan to authoritarian, and expand across foreign lands.
4. Yes, propaganda was used. It was used to convince other countries to help Japan, to degrade American troops, and to deny negative claims about Japan.
5. The government interacted with the economy heavily. The Japanese did not have freedom of expression. The military was more dominant than it had ever been.

Stephanie Perrone

5/1/2020 06:57:12 am

I should do the actual work and I plan on it but first I have a question. I've heard some people say, who are history buffs, that democratic socialism doesn't exist. Why is that?

Sherer

5/4/2020 01:09:11 pm

Because they aren't history buffs?

Ideologies of Major WWII Combatants

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