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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What happens when the political restraints that an individual has come to rely on are removed?

2. Who replaces the original self?

3. What does the development of individual and social characters lead to?

4. What is "spontaneous" action?

5. Why is it possible for people to conform without their knowledge?

Short Essay Questions

1. What qualities did Hitler and Nazism possess that appealed to a large population of Germans?

2. How does Fromm describe sadistic people?

3. How does formal education limit a child's freedom?

4. Why was Nazism so appealing to the lower middle class of Germans?

5. What characteristics describe the first group of Germans who supported the Nazis?

6. What two false theories does Fromm discount that accounted for the rise of Nazism?

7. How does a democratic society put pressure on individuals to conform?

8. What is true freedom and what do Fromm's critics fear it can lead to?

9. What were the economic, social, and political conditions like in Germany prior to Hitler's rise to power?

10. What two choices does a person have when confronted by isolation and fear in achieving freedom?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine Fromm's ideas on democracy as a political ideology from the last chapter of his book. In your response, address the following points:

1). What aspects of a democratic society does Fromm support?

2). What aspects of a democratic society does Fromm not support?

3). How does a democratic society both support and harm an individual's freedom?

4). How is a democratic society similar and different to an authoritarian society?

Essay Topic 2

Compare the freedoms individuals possessed under the Catholic Church and those under Protestantism. In your response, be sure to answer the following questions:

1). Which religion provided greater freedom for the individual, and how did it provide that freedom?

2). How were other organized structures like politics and economics affected by each religion?

3). How did each religion appeal to the different social classes?

4). How did social class affect one's freedom?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay that compares Nazism to another authoritarian regime (Italian Fascism, North Vietnam, Chinese communism). In your essay, be sure to address the following points:

1). Similarities and differences in authoritarian leadership style.

2). Identify the political affiliations of both regimes.

3). Describe the historical events surrounding authoritarianism.

4). Explain how each regime suppresses the freedom of its citizens.

(see the answer keys)

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