Is Fascism a historically limited political phenomena?
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Recently a comrade has stated that: ‘ “fascism” was a historically-limited phenomenon’ (referring to the 1920s to the 1940s). Is this the consensus among the membership? I have to say that it’s a surprise to me that Franco’s Spain and Pinochet’s Chile are not to be considered fascistic.
As with all these things, it depends how you define it.
In Spain the military leaders who led the uprising against The Second Republic were not members of the Fascist party, The Falange. The Fascist movement played a secondary and subordinate role, with their party eventually being taken over by the Francoists.
‘I see even you draw a distinction between “fascist” and “fascistic” !’
‘Even you’! I’m just asking questions. Even the two most infamous examples of fascism, Italy and Germany, were not identical. Just as the evolution of capitalism has taken different paths in different countries; we can still call them capitalist. Ideology apart I think we can use the term to describe a particular type of capitalism which, like its leftwing counterpart of Bolshevism, evolves as a response to the failure of ‘liberal’ capitalism. Certainly you don’t have to belong to a party that calls itself fascist to be one. I sometimes get the feeling that comrades believe that what happened in the middle part of the 20th century in Europe can never happen again – I do not share such optimism.
Indeed, there were specific historical instances for the Hitler & Mussolini regimes. But we have an ideologically fascist government in Italy right now, but the historic circumstance of Italy now means they can’t just sweep away democracy (or that they have no interest in doing so). I think there is a real chance that the front national will have the next presidency of France, but I think they are unlikely to behave in office much different than Trump did in the states.
To discuss this meaningfully, we need a working definition of fascism that distinguishes from conservatism, authoritarianism, militarism and nationalism – things we have seen in government many times over.
To discuss this meaningfully, we need a working definition of fascism.
From the A-Z of Marxism: https://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/publications/an-a-to-z-of-marxism/#F
Fascism. The term fascismo was coined by the Italian Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini and Hegelian philosopher Giovanni Gentile. It is derived from the Italian word fascio, which means ‘bundle’ or ‘union’. Fascism was an authoritarian, nationalistic and anti-socialist political ideology that preaches the need for a strong state ruled by a single political party led by a charismatic leader. Later the word was used in relation to a similar extreme nationalist movement in Germany even though this described itself as ‘national-socialist’ (Nazi) rather than fascist. Both these movements won control of political power more or less constitutionally, in Italy in 1922 and in Germany in 1933, and proceeded to establish a one-party dictatorship with mass organisations to win over the population and preaching that all members of the ‘nation’ had a common interest. Fascism/Nazism was implacably opposed to Marxism for its internationalism and its recognition of the class struggle within nations.
Reading:
Roger Eatwell, Fascism: A History, 2003Giovanni Gentile & Benito Mussolini, The Doctrine of Fascism, 1932
‘To discuss this meaningfully, we need a working definition of fascism that distinguishes from conservatism, authoritarianism, militarism and nationalism – things we have seen in government many times over.’
YMS – Fascism contains all of the above. For the Hitler regime we can add: charismatic leader cult, pseudo religiosity, belief in a ‘golden age’ past, racism, xenophobia, cultural superiority etc. In terms of economics ‘National Socialism’ did not go in for nationalization of industry but rather packed the boards of these companies with Nazis. There are also elements of social Darwinism together with the Nietzschean ‘force of the will’. These ideological elements are all present to one degree or another within capitalist ideology and only find their extreme expression when capitalism periodically crashes and burns.
Reading:
Roger Eatwell, Fascism: A History, 2003Giovanni Gentile & Benito Mussolini, The Doctrine of Fascism, 1932
David Renton’s 2020 “Fascism: History and Theory” is worth reading too. And no, he doesn’t think MAGA is best described as “fascist”.
ALB – You write in the above that: ‘Fascism, then, in its proper sense was an inter-world-war historical phenomenon which is not going to repeat itself because the conditions of that time are not going to. In this sense classical fascism is not a threat.’
But hasn’t it been seen to be a threat in the Middle East, South America and Africa? Your rather Eurocentric view might possibly hold up in a European context (although this is unlikely given the Ukrainian conflict) but certainly not in a global context.But hasn’t it been seen to be a threat in the Middle East, South America and Africa?
The only way you can speak of “fascism” in these places is by using a broader definition than the one used in the quote above.
Like I said orignally, it’s all about how you define it.
DJP – Defining something that is irrational and incoherent isn’t easy but then that is one of the strengths of Fascism.
Walter Benjamin’s definition:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aestheticization_of_politics“Fascism attempts to organize the newly proletarianized masses without affecting the property structure which the masses strive to eliminate. Fascism sees its salvation in giving these masses not their right, but instead a chance to express themselves. The masses have a right to change property relations; Fascism seeks to give them an expression while preserving property.”
I think this includes the notion of fascism as mobilised dictatorship: fascists aren’t content to just rule, but also to ensure that everyone is involved, you cannot be a quiet bystander.
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