Customer Reviews

Mussolini's Intellectuals: Fascist Social and Political Thought

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A. James Gregor has written one of the definitive work on the nature and Ideology of Fascism by taking a common sense approach all to rare in academia. He goes directly to Fascist theorists on economics, sociology and philosophy, and forms a coherent image of a coherent doctrine. He shows the evolution of these concepts from the early nationalist economics of Friedrich List, to the Corporativism of Ugo Spirito. He also gives detail to the Actualism of Giovanni Gentile "The Philosopher of Fascism" though not as much as his other works. As a long time student of the History of Fascist Italy, the book was still an eye opener. To those new to it, it should be the conerstone of your learning.

Too often the word "Fascist" is thrown around, I hear it commonly applied to Neo-conservatives, Liberals, Islamic Fundamentalists, Bigots and Right wingers of every stripe. Be warned: You'll think twice about spouting such rubbish after reading this book, when you understand what Fascism actually is, you may loose your favorite political slur.

Gregor does an amazing job of digging through the almost forgotten annals of Fascist history and coming up with a well-reasoned, well-explained history of the evolution of Fascism in Italy. It takes courage these days to be objective in a world where the word "fascist" is an insult thrown into political discussions by people who do not even know what it means. This book explains it all and provides proof that rather than a bunch of emotional, blood thirsty industrialists and their zombie followers, as portrayed in almost every other book on the subject, the Italian Fascists were a highly intellectual group of people with very solid reasons for their chosen government. Eye-opening. Highly recommended for anyone interested in 20th century politics and especially, I think, for those on the Left who want to understand Fascism beyond the rhetoric.

This is an excellent introduction to the individuals, philosophies, and events which influenced the formation of Italian Fascism. It provides an understanding of the historical, national (Italian), and international events which immediately preceded the fascist party and lent themselves to its creation. This book will provide the reader with a greater historical awareness than is commonly offered.

Whether this book is considered a total failure or a complete success depends upon how the reader understands it. The author's announced purpose is to disprove the public perception of Fascism as a pathologically irrational force, similar in nature to "soccer thugs, the Ku Klux Klan, and sundry sociopaths and terrorists." But no conclusion could be more ridiculous. The horrible people Professor Gregor describes in this book are in fact sociopaths promoting terrorism, pseudo-intellectuals concocting one absurdity after another to justify a totalitarian regime.

But if this book is actually a parody on 21st century American politics, it is a complete success. How many arrogant American politicians do we have who act as if they are "infallibly enlightened by the forces of history"? How many political elitists do we have who think that voters will never understand serious issues, and that they need someone to govern on their behalf? How many "charismatic" leaders do we have who are constantly denouncing "indecisiveness" and "dysfunctional legislative bodies"? Whenever a politician wants us to "Ignore the issues and trust me!", Benito Mussolini is looking proudly over his shoulder.

I think that Professor Gregor has chosen an innovative literary format to say something important about American politics, and it is a message we need to hear.