Describe the Nature of a Totalitarian Regime, and Compare and Contrast Hitler's Nazi Regime with that of Stalin in Communist Russia

In order to accurately compare and contrast Hitler and Nazi Germany with that of Stalinist Russia it is important that we first discuss and fully understand the nature of the totalitarian regime. This will be achieved through an illustration of each separate entity of the totalitarianism system of state bureaucracy; economy management; legislature and the executive. The restriction placed upon civil society achieved through established social control agencies such as the police and judiciary and then the importance of the military machine to the totalitarian regime. Further, to understanding the similarities and differences between Germany and Russia it is important that we discuss both countries in terms of their political history and the resulting effect on their economies and how both Hitler and Stalin used these to develop and support their own 'cult of personality's'. Finally it is essential to the question that we examine both fascism and communism and show how both these ideologies although at different ends of the political spectrum were used respectively to achieve and support powerful nations based on state supremacy and nationalism.

germany

Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini in Munich, Germa...

Mussolini (left) and Hitler sent their armies to N...

The reality of the totalitarian state is a terrifying form of government, centring mainly upon the personality of the chosen leader and the ideology of a single political party, but it also excavates elements of anti-Semitism and European imperialism. The complexity of the origins of totalitarianism arise form the interconnecting ideological perceptions of totalitarianism. State bureaucracy in all totalitarian states is an extension of, and based upon the dictatorial doctrine of the political regime. Initially the totalitarian regime creates a command economy, a means by which, the regime gains growing control over bankers and financers, industrialists and the workforce. This command economy was apparent in both Germany and Russia however, it is important to note that in Germany industry and finance remained...