Chapter 23: The Rise Of Fascism And Totalitarian States -Introduction

Chapter 23 - When Some Countries Stopped Being Free

1. Introduction

President Wilson once said he wanted the world to be safe for people to have a say in how things are run, as the United States joined a big war in 1917. But after the war, things didn't go as hoped. Even some countries that won felt like they lost. This made a lot of people very unhappy, especially in Germany because they were treated very harshly after the war. Countries had a hard time fixing their broken economies too.

The peace time in the 1920s was not peaceful at all. Countries were having a lot of trouble inside and with each other. Things got even worse in the 1930s when a big economic crisis that started in the United States spread all over. Hard times made people in some countries want leaders who promised to fix everything, even if it meant they would have less freedom. Dictators took over in Germany, Italy, the Soviet Union, and some other places.

Themes

Culture Talk: Fascism was when people really believed in loving their country, following strong leaders, and thinking the country's needs were more important than people's freedom.

Talking Politics: The big mess after the war and the big economic crisis made it easier for communism and fascism to spread and for very bossy leaders to take over.

Money Matters: Under fascism and communism, the government had a lot of control over businesses and money.