Origins and Doctrines of Fascism

The post World War I era in Europe saw devastating and crippling effects on the economy of most of its participating nations. This was especially true for Germany and Italy. The political arena during this interwar period was dominated by two extremes in which people relied on the "Left" to solve Europe's problems and the "Right" to provide leadership. This political feud resulted in totalitarian states and the eventual birth of fascism. Giovanni Gentile's "Origins and Doctrines of Fascism" is an attempt at justifying and understanding the rationale behind Fascism through the conditions that led to the institution of this new regime.

Gentile wrote this piece in an economically backwards Italy, one overwhelmed by heavy debt and disappointment from the miserable rewards obtained from participating in the preceding war. Further political dissension arose as weary soldiers came back to face condemnation from a dismal and unappreciative society, discontented with this result. Many people began to believe that Italy's efforts in the war were entirely worthless and soon questioned the purpose of entering the war in the first place. In response, Gentile rejects this notion by describing how a nation or a State can be formed and united through war or revolution under a common goal, the benefit of all individuals of the State. He also condemns the "Left", the neutralists, liberals and democrats who were only concerned with their own individualistic and materialistic objectives. Intellectualists were also criticized and seen as practicing an impractical doctrine, and distancing themselves from politics or the "real matters". Gentile believes this group of literati reflects a developing, unacceptable "decadent culture", one in which the people do not identify themselves with the nation and are indifferent both towards morals and politics. Instead, he took to the Right, the pro-war interventionalists, who carried much of the patriotism or nationalism that forms the basis of Fascism.

Fascism is not a systematic doctrine or philosophy with fixed theories to be adhered by. Rather, it is a dynamic and tentative system that follows an underlying principle or method. It is marked by a centralization of authority under a dictator that enforces the unification of State and individual. Giovanni heavily emphasizes the fact that Fascism did not arise with a particular program, but