Revolution

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 801.

Unit 8

TASKS

7.1 Answer the following questions to check how well you have read the text:

1) What does the term "totalitarianism" imply?

2) What is the main feature that distinguishes totalitarianism from dic­tatorship, despotism and tyranny?

3) Explain why the achievement of the goal in a totalitarian state can never be acknowledged.

4) How does the state's ideology influencethe people under totalitari -an rule?

5) What is the nature of public opinion in totalitarian states?

6) Try to compare police operations within a totalitarian state with those within a police state.

7) Speak of the role of a constitution in states with totalitarian form of government.

7.2 Now decide whether the following statements are true or false; correct the wrong ones:

1) Totalitarianism is a political system in which only one political party and no rival loyalties are permitted.

2) Under totalitarian rule all resources are directed toward the attain­ment of some special goal which is in fact never achieved.

3) The activity of social institutions and organizations are encouraged and stimulated by the totalitarian government.

4) Acquiescence is the only means of surviving under totalitarian rule.

5) The totalitarian regime spawns lots of internal and external ene­mies responsible for the state's troubles and condemned by public opinion.

6) Under totalitarianism old religious and social ties are hardly con­doned.

7) Popular support of the totalitarian state's ideology is always unani­mous and sincere.

8) Organized violence is necessary in totalitarian states as it is justifiedby the pursuit of the state's goal and therefore is considered legal.

9) The German constitution of the Weimar Republic was in fact nullified by Hitler.

10) Stalin's interpretation of Marxism-Leninism was within the frame­work of Soviet law.

11) In a police state the government operates without the constraintsof laws.

7.3 Give English-Russian equivalents of the following expressions:

large-scale violence; преследовать некую особую цель; to con­tend with the state; клеймить позором; mass conformity; санкци­онированные общественные организации; to foil the goal: внешний враг; to abrogate a constitution; молчаливое согласие; to further the goal; действовать в рамках закона; to be amenable to absorption into a single unified movement; непредсказуемая политика; by the whim of the rulers; подавлять любое инакомыслие; to embrace the totalitarian state's ideology; произвольно вносить поправки в конституцию; a final arbiter; чувство страха у людей; constraints of laws; настраивать общественное мнение против кого-либо; supplanting of all political institutions by new ones; порождать идеологию; overriding commitment; предавать забвению; to single out people for persecution and extinction; отменять (аннулировать) конституцию; to sweep away all legal traditions; любой ценой, чего бы это ни стоило; obsession; общественный строй

7.4 Complete the text with the words and word combinations from the box:

uncertainty; discouraged; final arbiter; be acknowledged; by the whim; terror; ideological foundation; long-standing; blurs; artifi­cial; branded evil; foil; spawns; acquiescence; vested in; abrogated; further; supplanted; pursuit; amenable; an obsession; exemplified; at will; nullifying; predictable; framework; in terms; strives

Under totalitarianism all ... traditions are ... and suppressed. Tra­ditional social institutions and organizations are ... with new ones. Old religious and social ties are replaced by ... ties to the state and its ideology.

The ... of some special goal to the exclusion of all others becomes ... with the totalitarian state. Whatever might ... the goal is supported; whatever might ... the goal is rejected. All this ... an ideology explain­ing everything ... of the goal and making people ... to absorption into a single, unified movement. The infinite diversity among individuals ... , replaced by mass conformity or at least ... to the demands of the totalitarian state. Any dissent is repressed and ....

Totalitarian dictatorships are often ... by Nazy Germany under Hitler and Soviet Union under Stalin. In both these states the actions of the government were extremely unpredictable and directed ... of the rulers. In fact the role of law maker was ... one man. Although Hitler never... the German constitution, no one could prevent him from amending it ... , in effect ... it, as well as Stalin never permitted the constitution of 1936 to become the ... of Soviet law. He was also the ... in the interpretation of Marxism-Leninism. Neither Hitler nor Stalin were ever... in their decisions; it inspired constant... and ... into minds of their people.

The most curious thing about totalitarianism is the fact, that the great special goal it ... for can never... as achieved, because pursuit of the goal is the only ... for the existence of a totalitarian state.

7.5 Translate the following into English using words and word combinations from the text:

Тоталитарное государство есть не что иное, как политичес­кая система, сметающая на своем пути все социальные, поли­тические и правовые традиции прежних лет. Практически все аспекты жизни в стране подчинены власти правительства в лице единственной политической партии. Идеологической ос­новой такого государства является постоянное стремление к некоей великой цели, например индустриализации или завое­вания других стран. И несмотря на то, что поставленная цель преследуется с маниакальным упорством, ценою всех ресурсов страны и усилий общества, она так никогда и не признается до­стигнутой, ибо само существование тоталитарного государства есть путь к достижению этой цели.

В результате такой политики появляется идеология, объяс­няющая все в свете стремления к «великому будущему», что формирует у общества удобный государству взгляд на жизнь. И если причастность к санкционированным правительством общественным организациям сначала всего лишь поощряется сверху, то впоследствии это становится обязательным условием для нормальной жизни.

Отдельная личность как бы нивелируется в такой атмосфе­ре единодушного стремления к обoщей цели. Индивидуальное своеобразие людей стирается. Надо отметить, что большин­ство начинает искренне принимать идеологию тоталитарного государства, остальные вынуждены подчиняться или молча соглашаться с его требованиями, так как любое инакомыслие клеймится позором, а внутрипартийные разногласия вообще не допускаются.

Более того, тоталитарное правительство находит возможным и даже необходимым прибегать к широкомасштабному и орга­низованному насилию по отношению к своему народу, а обще­ство, загипнотизированное слепой приверженностью высоким идеям государства и запуганное образом внешнего врага, счита­ет возможным найти для этого оправдание. Причем, для того чтобы стать жертвой этого насилия, совсем не обязательно от­крыто высказывать свои взгляды, противоречащие государ­ственной политике, и даже иметь их вообще. Трагедия в том, что действия единовластных правителей, стоящих во главе партии, бывают порой столь непредсказуемы, что не отвечают ни логике, ни конституции, ни законам. Такое положение ве­щей держит людей в постоянном напряжении и неуверенности, вселяет страх перед завтрашним днем.

7.6 Read and translate the following text without a dictionary:

In the broadest sense, totalitarianism is characterized by strong central rule that attempts to control and direct all aspects of individu­al life through coercion and repression. Examples of such centralized totalitarian rule include the Maurya dynasty of India (c.321 — с 185 ВС), the Ch'in dynasty of China (221-206 ВС), and the reign of Zulu chief Shaka (c. 1816-1828).

Italian dictator Benito Mussolini coined the term totalitario in the early 1920s to describe the new fascist state of Italy, which he further described as: "All within the state, none outside the state, none against the state." By the beginning of World War II, "totalitarian" had become synonymous with absolute and oppressive single-party government.

The totalitarian states of Nazi Germany under Adolf Hitler (1933— 1945) and the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin (1924-1953) were the first examples of decentralized or popular totalitarianism, in which the state achieved overwhelming popular support for its leader­ship. This support was not spontaneous; its genesis depended on a charismatic leader; and it was made possible only by modern develop­ment in communication and transportation.

7.7.Write an essay or speak on the following topic: "Phenomenon of overwhelming mass conformity to the totalitarian state's ideology".

Revolution has been a very frequently used term since the 17th century at least. But what does it imply as a notion? The generalised definition as given in the Encyclopaedia Britannica carries that a revolution is "a major, sudden, and hence typically violent alteration in government and in related associations and structures." As far as economic sphere is concerned the same term is used in expressions such as Industrial Revolution, Cultural Revolution, for these terms refer to a radical and profound change in economic and cultural relationships as well as advance in technology and science.

As is known the very word revolution comes from the Latin word revolutio and its original meaning implies the idea of changing or turning something. The idea of revolution in modern understanding of the word has its roots in the Aristotelian notion of cyclical altera­tions in the forms of government but now it carries the idea of radical departure from any previous historical pattern. Revolution is held to challenge not only the established political order but also the eco­nomic system, social structure and cultural values of those societies as was proved by the greatest revolutions of European history which hap­pened in England, France and Russia. From ancient Greece to the Middle Ages revolution was considered a very destructive force. The ancient Greeks found revolution possible only after the decay of the fundamental moral and religious tenets of society. Plato, for instance, believed that society where existed a firmly established code of beliefs could hinder the revolution. Another philosopher who influenced Western European philosophical thought more than anybody else, namely Aristotle, also favoured the idea that a society is vulnerable to revolution if its basic value system is flimsy or tenuous.

Throughout many centuries the idea of revolution was being devel­oped and elaborated. Many philosophers and historians contributed to the analysis of processes which could provide the ground for a revolu­tionary upheaval and the aftermath society had to face afterwards. At­titude to the idea of revolution changed in the course of time. During the Middle Ages the maintenance of the established beliefs and the existing order remained top priority. Great efforts were undertaken to find means of opposing revolution and stilling any changes in society. Religious authority was so strong and its belief in the maintenance of order so fundamental that the church required that people should accept the inequities of power, instead of upsetting the stability of society.

Only after the emergence of secular humanism during the Renais­sance did this concept of revolution begin to acquire a more modern meaning. In the 16th century the Italian philosopher and writer Nic-colo Machiavelli admitted the importance of creating a state that could endure the threat of revolution. But he stated that a necessary stipulation for it should be the introduction of certain necessary changes in the structure of government. The only thing Machiavelli was primarily concerned with was the creation of a truly stable state. It should be mentioned that he never used the term "revolution" itself but the very acceptance of the idea of change placed him at the fore­front of modern revolutionary thought.

The 17th century English poet Milton was the first to believe that revolutionary processes or upheavals were just society's inherent abili­ty to realise its potential. He believed in revolution as the right of soci­ety to protect itself from abusive tyrants, thus securing freedom from oppressive leadership and creating a new order that reflected the needs of the people.

Immanuel Kant added another facet to the understanding of the idea of revolution. He called it a force for the advancement of man­kind. Kant believed that revolution was a natural step for a higher eth­ical foundation for society. This particular idea served as a basis for the American and French revolutions.

It was Hegel who served a crucial catalyst in the formation of 20th century revolutionary thought. For him revolution was the accomplish­ment of human destiny. As for revolutionary leaders Hegel believed them capable not only of instigating society but also of implementing reforms. Karl Marx took Hegel's ideas as a basis for his doctrine of class struggle focused on subsequent control over the economic pro­cesses in society. His ideals of freedom and a classless society (that acme of revolutionary endeavour) could be achieved if the working class or the proletariat managed to take over the means of production. He considered it the culmination of the endeavour of proletariat after which there would be no need for further political changes.

Lenin had to transform Marx's theory of the world revolution and put forward the idea of building socialism in one separate country even without necessary economic and political conditions.

This kind of revolutions inspired by Marxist and Lenin's ideals took place not only in Russia, but also in China, Vietnam, Cuba and other countries throughout the 20th century.