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56 pages 1 hour read

Hannah Arendt

On Revolution

Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 1963

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Index of Terms

Democracy

“Democracy” is a broad term describing any system of government in which state power is vested in the general population. The term was coined in ancient Greece to mean rule by the people (demos in Greek). Today the term encompasses a variety of political systems incorporating elements of direct and representative democracy, as well as protection of civil rights and liberties. In On Revolution, Arendt largely uses the term in the narrow sense of the ancient Greeks to mean majority rule, with negative connotations of “mob rule” or “elective despotism.”

Federalism

“Federalism” is a political system in which power is shared between a central (federal) government and regional governments called states, provinces, cantons, and the like. The term derives from the Latin foedus, meaning “treaty, pact, or covenant,” and originally was equivalent to “confederation,” or a league of sovereign countries. Through its use in the new American republic, however, the term was strengthened to refer to a subdivided government within a single country. Among America’s Founding Fathers, “Federalists” such as John Adams and Alexander Hamilton were supporters of a strong central government, while “Anti-Federalists,” such as Thomas Jefferson, advocated for a weaker central government and stronger state governments—essentially the opposite of what the term connotes today.

Hungarian Revolution of 1956

The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 was a nationwide uprising against the repressive, Soviet-aligned Communist government of the Hungarian People’s Republic. It began on October 23 when 20,000 protestors gathered in Budapest to demand civil rights and independence from Soviet influence, leading to an armed standoff with the police and the deaths of several students. The government collapsed, and Imre Nagy, a reform-minded communist who had been prime minister in 1953-1955, was reinstated. The Nagy government negotiated a cease-fire, freed thousands of political prisoners, and declared Hungary’s withdrawal from the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. In Moscow, Soviet leaders initially decided not to depose the new government, but after Nagy announced the goal of geopolitical neutrality, on October 30 the Red Army re-invaded Hungary, attacking Budapest with air strikes, artillery, and tanks. The last insurgents surrendered on November 11. The Soviets installed a new government, which executed several hundred Hungarians and arrested many thousands.

Isonomy

“Isonomy” is the English version of isonomia, which meant “equality of political rights” in the ancient Greek city-states. The term was briefly revived in 16th-century England but soon replaced by phrases like “rule of law” and “equality before the law.” Arendt defines isonomy as “no-rule,” a system with no division between rulers and ruled, as indicated by the lack of the suffixes “archy” (from archon, top ruler) or “cracy” (kratos, governing power) (20). It is thus distinct from “democracy,” or rule by the demos, although some critics at the time rejected this distinction and pejoratively equated isonomy with mob rule. For Arendt, isonomy is the ideal political system, because it allows people the full measure of political freedom through self-governance.

Polis

Polis is an ancient Greek term, literally translated as “city,” that was used in the Greek city-states more narrowly to refer to the administrative city center where citizens carried out the activities of self-governance, and later also to the body of citizens of that city-state. The term is important for understanding Arendt’s conception of political freedom and equality as spatially limited: Regardless of their material circumstances or station in life, Greek citizens were all equal as citizens—but only within the borders of the polis, where everyone’s opinion and vote was weighed equally.

Republic

“Republic” derives from the Latin res publica, meaning “public affair” or, literally, the “people’s thing.” It denotes a political system in which power is held by the public and their representatives, in contrast to a monarchy or oligarchy, in which power springs from heredity or divine right or is consolidated in the hands of the rich and powerful few, respectively. Philosophers such as Machiavelli and Montesquieu, as well as American revolutionists such as John Adams (who wrote a book about the history of republics) and James Madison, drew heavily on knowledge of the classical Greek and Roman systems in advocating for modern republicanism.

Russian Revolution

The Russian Revolution, sometimes also referred to as “the October Revolution,” refers to the 1917 Bolshevik overthrow of the liberal government that had governed Russia since the abdication of the last Tsar in February of that year. Long-awaited elections to a new Constituent Assembly were held in November, but the Assembly was dissolved by the Congress of Soviets after only a single day in session. Anti-Bolshevik groups unsuccessfully fought to overthrow the new government in the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was proclaimed in 1922, under the dictatorial rule of the renamed Communist Party. The Soviet Union lasted until its dissolution in 1991.

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