totalitarian
toh-tal-ih-TAIR-ee-un
/toʊˌtæl.ɪˈteə.ri.ən/
Relating to a system of government that is centralized and dictatorial and requires complete subservience to the state.
Goes beyond authoritarianism by seeking total control over public and private life, including thoughts, culture, and economy.
The story behind the word. Coined in the 1920s by Italian anti-fascists and then adopted by Benito Mussolini to describe the state's total reach: 'Everything in the State, nothing outside the State, nothing against the State.'
Word relationships
- omnipotent: Omnipotent means all-powerful in general, whereas totalitarian specifically denotes state administrative control.
- pluralistic: Promotes diverse autonomous groups and individual rights.
Commonly confused with
- authoritarian: Authoritarian regimes control political power; totalitarian regimes control political power PLUS personal beliefs, daily life, and social thought.
Word family
- totalitarianism (noun): A system of government that is centralized and dictatorial and requires complete subservience.
Collocations
- totalitarian state
- totalitarian control
- totalitarian ideology
- totalitarian regime
Example sentences
- "George Orwell's 1984 presents a terrifying vision of a totalitarian state where even private thoughts are criminalized." Literary Context
- "Totalitarian governments eliminate civil society to ensure the state penetrates every sphere of existence." Political Theory
Memory hook
TOTAL control over total existence. TOTAL control over life.
When not to use
Avoid using for mild rules or simple bureaucratic annoyance; it applies strictly to extreme political systems.
Fun facts
- Hannah Arendt wrote the seminal text 'The Origins of Totalitarianism' in 1951, reshaping political science.
Related words
Explore more words
dictate, censorship, subjugate, utopian, omnipotent, allegiance
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