The Origins of Totalitarianism

By: Hannah Arendt

Narrated by: Nadia May

Length: 23 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's Summary

This classic, definitive account of totalitarianism traces the emergence of modern racism as an "ideological weapon for imperialism", beginning with the rise of anti-Semitism in Europe in the 19th century and continuing through the New Imperialism period from 1884 to World War I.

©1966 Hannah Arendt (P)2007 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Vast and intricate analysis of horror

Arendt uses Marxist economics, combined with a Hobbesian outlook, to evaluate the rise of Hitler and Stalin. Her thesis is that their totalitarian regimes were qualitatively different from other despotisms, both inwardly and outwardly, because their aim was not self or national aggrandizement, but pursuit of a blinding ideology, leading ultimately to total destruction.

She describes totalitarianism arising out of anti-Semitism and global imperialism. There are some wonderful insights here, such as the change in anti-Semitism from anti-Judaism to anti-Jewishness and the change in the concept of nation from one of geography to one of ethnicity or race. The pattern of anti-Semitism and imperialism leading to totalitarianism seems to fit the German model better than the Russian, however. In addition, her discussion of racism suffers from ignoring New World slavery. She acknowledges the irony of the US as a land of liberty founded on slavery, but she does not consider the totalitarian nature of American slavery.

Arendt is at her best evaluating the nature of totalitarian regimes. She describes the ability of Stalin and Hitler to destroy the connections of individuals with others in society and eventually self-identity. She also explains how the focus of a totalitarian regime on ideology isolates it from reality and makes it so much harder for the non-totalitarian world to understand or deal with regimes focused on goals other than self or national interest. This incomprehension also makes it harder for the rest of the world to grasp the reality of the Radical Evil adopted in pursuit of totalitarian ideology. She describes in academic terms much of what Orwell illustrated in 1984.

Arendt also gives ominous warnings about the need for the separation of law and power, meaning that those charged with executing the law should not be the ones deciding what the law is, as well as the assault on civil society that results from constant or unending war.

Very Heady Look at Theory of Totalitarianism

This was not at all what I was expecting. I was thinking this would be more of a history of the early stages of Totalitarianism governments such as in USSR and Germany. Those are the two governments that Arendt focuses on but this really isn't that sort of book. This is a theory book; meaning it focuses more on psyche and philosophy and behavior theory than facts, anecdotes, and events. There was a totally superfluous digression concerning Benjamin Disraeli that was quite lengthy, and that was actually one of the more interesting parts of the book for me. The reason I gave it 4 stars overall is that I think if you're looking for a theory book, this is an excellent one. It just wasn't what I was looking for. I don't want that to influence people who might be thinking of buying this though. And Nadia May is brilliant as always as narrator. In fact, if not for May, I probably would have checked out more than I did. She makes even the driest theory ramblings seem sort of interesting. More than that, she always convinces me 100% that she herself believes what she's reading and that what she's reading is absolutely true.

Difficult to follow

My review only applies to the audio version. Whatever the merits of the book itself. I found it very hard to follow as the mass of detail and the manner of writing was such that it was difficult to listen. For a work of this type you need to be able to go back and reread sentences and whole paragraphs. The narrator was good but the complexity of the subject matter was hard to keep up with. I found I had to stop and think about what was just said. I have listened to hundreds of audio books over the years and this was the most difficult book to listen to given the way the subject is presented and the not exactly clear presentation of it. Plus the fact that some of the material is dated particularly that on the Soviet Union and the characterization of Lenin.

Excellent

A well thought out and engaging work. She explains so much through the analysis of human history. I believe that much of Arendt is still relevant today. An excellent audiobook reproduction btw.

Totalitarianism and History

Totalitarianism is a human enterprise difficult to explain but possible to comprehend. This work of Hannah Arendt helps the reader in understanding this human "achievement". Pure and absolute evil doesn't appear suddenly, it has its roots in history. Arendt examines the genesis and the development of anti-Semitism and imperialism in the first two parts of this work. Its characteristics and history are well explained in order to relate them to totalitarianism. Arendt has a talent to relate the pivotal facts in history to ideas (concepts), its generation and development. Her writings increase the reader comprehension of the questions and, when confronted with human faults and failures, inspire the search of solutions. As the result of this well made work, the reader gets invaluable knowledge about totalitarianism and its manifestations in history and about how to overcome it.

Witty, Wise, and Haunting

"With every ending, there comes a beginning"
if you can get through this book, it is one of the best books about the rise of nationalism, totalitarianism, and racism. More than a text from a dead past, you will hear unsettling echoes in our world today.
Hannah Arendt is a historian and philosopher to remember. She is a guiding voice in confusion. but honestly, she's more than a little confusing herself.
if you want to read this book, take it from me: read it as an audiobook. It's very dense and hard to read in print, but it's worth the effort and time.

also, the most famous and referenced part of this book is Chapter 9: The Rights Of Man. if you find the whole to be unreadable, skip to this point. it's important

Deep and complex, gets better as it progresses

Admitidly very long, but overall really interesting. The first 70-80% is slow, and contains long discussions of topics which later I couldn't remember why they were relevant, but the last 20-30% was packed with really insightful discussions on totalitarianism.

Helpful and necessary aid

The Audible narration by Nadia May made Arendt’s complex syntax easier to understand. This is a sophisticated read. It takes or it took my entire attention to comprehend Arendt. I read and re-read and re-read sections and chapters without narration and with it. But May does a fine job.

One of the best nonfiction books of the 20th century

Great perspective from someone experienced first hand the rise of totalitarian governments if the first half of the 20th century. A thought provoking piece of political philosophy that is relevant today and accessible to those of us without philosophical training. The reader will need some background in 19th and 20th century history however.

Lessons from history not to be ignored

This work from 1951 is as relevant today as it was at the transition between WW II and the cold war. From the point of view of recent events, Arendt's most relevant insight is how big lies can be told and repeated by those in power until they are "normalized". She clearly describes the anatomy and mechanics of an alternative worldview that had abandoned normal, fact-based standards of thought and discourse. It's a chilling reminder of how seemingly innocuous (or at least easily resistible) crackpot ideas can gain momentum and lead to something truly horrific.

The narration of this audiobook is excellent. The story only bogs down in the extensive descriptions of the workings of totalitarian states in the last third of the book. The first third, describing the history leading to the rise of totalitarianism, and the the second third, describing how ordinary people were swept up by an entirely new populism that discarded all of the old rules of public and political discourse, provide the key understandings for our world today.

A must read, for people interested in history.

Would you listen to The Origins of Totalitarianism again? Why?

Hanna Arendt gives us great insight into European history, espesially the period 1800-1950. Why the first generation of educated young Jews, leaves the profession of their parents, and become revolutionaries, and end up in gulags and concentration camps. She also lists the differences and similarities, between Nazi-Germany and Soviet-Union.

What other book might you compare The Origins of Totalitarianism to, and why?

"The Road to Serfdom" by F.A. Hayek
"In the Shadow of Satan" by Janusz Subczyski

What does Nadia May bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Clear and easy listening.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes

Hard but interesting

Very thorough treatment of the subject that requires attention & concentration but well worth it

Endless waffle with no substance

I tried really hard to get something from this book, but I found it to be pretty much pure waffle. And endless stream of opinions presented as fact, without anything really being explained or joined together. Key terms and concepts were never defined or explained. For most of it I found it impossible to understand what point was really being made or what the relevance is. I was unable to detect any real substance throughout.

The whole books therefore seems completely pointless, and I am struggling to work out what purpose there author may have had in writing it, except maybe to prove how clever she is to whoever might actually be able to make any sense out of what she has written. However, I guess that any such person, if they exist, must already know what ever it is that the book is saying, so they are unlikely to learn anything either.

The narration, although clear, I found to be a bit distracting due to quite extreme intonation and emphasis - a kind of interpretation of what mood or value the author may have been expressing. I would have preferred it to more neutral and simply read it, so I can decide on meaning myself.

Detailed yet lucid.

Hannah Arendt's dissection of Totalitarianism (in all of its aspects) is structured as an essay but is accessible to any audience. Her reasoning is clear and its structure becomes more and more evident which each ensuing passage. Nadia May's enunciation is equally clear and engaging.

Excellent narrative of totalitarian regimes

This was not an easy read, good theories but sometimes feels a bit over analysing. Nonetheless good and interesting read

Excellent history to fast track your understanding

I was directed to this book via Twitter as a good way of understanding both history and where we might be headed in the UK and USA right now. This is a very comprehension lesson and more people should read it and take note.

Lengthy, but worth the slog.

Why are the Jews the most persecuted and hated minority in Europe?
How did Hitler and Stalin organise their political controls and why did they work so effectively?
What does a prophecy mean in the mouth of a Totalitarian leader?

The parallels with the politics of 2019 are unsettling.

Style of writing doesn’t suit an audio book

Written just after the second world war, with some later amendments, the book inevitably only considers events up to that point in time. What surprised me was that it was about 15 hours of listening before the totalitarian regimes are discussed in any detail. The first 7 hours or so lays out the history of anti-semitism. Interesting and I’m sure revealing at the time of writing, but is now a familiar topic that has been covered by many authors. As a German Jew I can well understand why the author wanted to expose the injustices but I don’t see the close link between anti-semitism and totalitarianism.

The next 7 hours are about imperialism in great detail. Again, interesting but a well-trodden path by subsequent authors. The final third of the book does deal directly with Nazism and Soviet-style regimes the dominant totalitarian systems of the period. Again now familiar topics with many books written. The final chapter of the book is a strange addition of philosophical musings about aspects of loneliness and sat awkwardly as the finale to the book.

There is interesting material in the book but the style of writing is overly wordy and doesn’t suit being narrated. I skipped a few chapters here and there, such as a lengthly section on the Dreyfus affaire as I’ve read a book about that scandal.

I imagine in the early 1950s this was a ground-breaking book, but its verbose style of writing now seems dated and the material less illuminating. Of historical interest but inevitably omits the more recent regimes with one party dominating and ruling by force.

Problem with the order. Starts at chapter 4

Starts at chapter 4 and loops back. Basic technical issue which should be fixed. Great content however. Very well read.

informative but dull

struggled to finish, but understood there was valuable instead so plowed on.

feel it repeats itself.