In Our Time

Hannah Arendt

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Feb 2, 2017
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ANECDOTE

Arendt's Refugee Origins

  • Hannah Arendt escaped Nazi Germany and reached America in 1941 after detention and narrow escapes in Europe.
  • Her refugee experience deeply shaped her later political thought and critique of statelessness.
ANECDOTE

First Impressions Of America

  • On arrival in America Arendt learned English quickly and noted American social conformism like smoking rules.
  • She embraced American political freedom while remaining conscious of her refugee status and its effects.
INSIGHT

Two Pillars Of Totalitarianism

  • Arendt identifies ideology and terror as the twin essences of totalitarianism.
  • Ideology colonizes thought while terror strips people of political identity, making them superfluous.
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