Sociological explanation of political hypocrisy and its consequences for authoritarian governments (Nazi Germany, Soviet Union and pre-revolutionary Iran)

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Social Science Education Faculty, Farhangian University, Tehran, Iran

2 Associate Professor, Department of Theoretical-Cultural Sociology, Research Institute for Social Studies, Research Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies.

Abstract

The purpose of study is to describe and explaine the role of political hypocrisy in the failure of autocratic regimes (Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union before its collapse, and Pahlavi II Iran). The study method is case study and the manifestations of hypocrisy have been described in the three mentioned historical cases and have been compared historically using the method of agreement and difference of Mill. Data were collected from primary and secondary sources and analyzes were presented in a comparative-historical manner.
Findings confirm the importance of hypocrisy in the authoritarian failure. Vulnerable regimes have suffered from both the hypocrisy of the leaders and the power apparatus and the hypocrisy of the masses. The regimes in pre-collapse period were lower in terms of the power of repression and, accordingly hypocrisy management, than in more stable periods. The propaganda apparatus of authoritarian regimes has played an important role in strengthening the hypocritical face of the regimes. Scientific and academic systems have been one of the most important factors in exposing the deceptive face of regimes and have played an important role in exposing the behind-the-scenes facts in reducing repression. Rival political wings and the opposition movement have also played an important role in raising public awareness and creating a revolutionary consciousness for collapse. In the case of Nazi Germany, the decline in mutual trust between the elite and the people, as well as the defeat in the war, were major factors in the collapse of the dictatorship.

Keywords

Main Subjects

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Research Letter of Political Science
Volume 17, Issue 4 - Serial Number 68
No.68
December 2022
Pages 7-52

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History

  • Receive Date: 07 August 2022
  • Revise Date: 15 October 2022
  • Accept Date: 25 October 2022

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