Define the “paranoid style” in American politics and foreign policy. E

Define the “paranoid style” in American politics and foreign policy. Evaluate each of the following as an expression of that style: The containment policy, NSC-68, McCarthyism.

What will be an ideal response?

ANSWER
The “paranoid style” alleges that grand conspiracies are at work, that malevolent forces work behind the scenes to control events. The containment policy assumed the threat of Soviet expansion, NSC-68 defined the U.S.-Soviet struggle as a zero-sum game where any communist gain was necessarily a loss for the free world, and McCarthyism was grounded in the belief that the evil forces of Communism had infiltrated the U.S. government, where they were gaining the capability of destroying the American way of life.