Topic+2+-+Fascism

 What is “Fascism”? The word Fascism originally referred to a specific political movement which developed in Italy at the end of the First World War. The first fascist party was founded by Benito Mussolini in 1919. Later, other political movements that resembled Mussolini’s were also described as fascist. The most powerful of these was Adolf Hitler’s German Nazi Party. Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany were the only two true fascist regimes; but in many other European countries political parties were set up, inspired by Mussolini and Hitler. They too have been called fascist. Fascism’s most striking characteristic was nationalism, the love of the nation. This was a reaction against democracy’s emphasis on individual freedom. Fascists also reacted against the internationalism of communism. Communists believed that the workers of all nations should unite and recognize their common interests. But the fascists thought that their nations were better than all others. Theirs was an **aggressive nationalism**: fascist nations would become great by conquering other, weaker nations. A second characteristic of fascism was its aim of **totalitarianism**. The state was to have **total control** over the lives of individual citizens. Hitler and Mussolini believed that there should be only **one political party** in the state, and that it should control all sources of information. There were no elections so people couldn’t get rid of the one ruling party. Organizations were set up to brainwash the young. There was constant **propaganda** putting forward the party view. Unlike in a democracy, opposing viewpoints were suppressed by **censorship**, and behind everything was the threat of arrest by a feared secret police force. Related to fascism’s totalitarianism was its third characteristic of **militarism**. The fascist parties, with their uniforms and parades, were closely modelled on the army, and they wanted to impose military values on the whole nation. Women were told that their role was to produce children for the nation’s armies. War was glorified as a source of nobility and a sign of national health. The main fascist virtues were discipline and unquestioning obedience. In the fascist state the ultimate source of authority was **the leader** – in Italy the Duce and in Germany the Fuhrer. The fascist leaders owed their position to **charisma**, an intense personal spell with which they were able to sway their listeners. Propaganda presented them as wise figures who had been chosen by destiny as the nation’s saviours. The devotion that they inspired could be religious in its intensity.

__** Keywords: **__

**charisma** __Differences Between Fascism and Democracy__  ** Fascism **   Ø One person decides everything. An individual, often charismatic, leader has complete sovereignty ie. the Fuhrer   Ø People have no political freedoms <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø The nation’s destiny is more important than individual freedoms <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø Aggressive nationalism and military values of discipline and obedience <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø The state has total control over peoples’ lives <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø There is only one political party which controls all sources of information <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø Opposing viewpoints are threatened with violence and the secret police   <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø Collective decision-making <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø The people are the highest authority in the land (sovereign) <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø People have much greater political freedoms <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø People have the right to be able to elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø Elections give people the chance to vote for representatives <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø There is more than one political party that people are able to vote into power <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø Political leaders and parties can be voted out at the next election <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Ø The government does not control all sources of information or opposing viewpoints
 * aggressive nationalism **
 * totalitarianism **
 * total control **
 * one political party **
 * propaganda **
 * censorship **
 * militarism **
 * the leader **
 * <span style="font-size: 70%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif"> Democracy   **



<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">Click on the Word icon below if you need another copy of the class handout....