This course is intended to acquaint students in depth with several examples of dictatorial governments selected from the history of the 20th and 21st centuries. The regimes under consideration during this semester are the Soviet Union (under Lenin and Stalin), Fascist Italy, and Nazi Germany. Both in Europe and worldwide, the 20th century ushered in unprecedented forms of dictatorial government. This course will examine the concepts of authoritarianism and totalitarianism. To what degree are these terms meaningful or useful? How do we distinguish between the two? What social, economic, political, technological, and cultural developments helped to create the preconditions for these new forms of government? This course will also compare and contrast the historical experiences; political practices; and social, economic, and cultural features of Europe's major dictatorships. Are regimes such as Lenin's, Stalin's, Mussolini's, and Hitler's fundamentally alike? Or do differences outweigh likenesses? What patterns, if any, can we draw from an investigation of these governments?