Origins and Doctrine of Fascism

With Selections from Other Works

Author: Giovanni Gentile

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Giovanni Gentile (1875-1944) was the major theorist of Italian fascism, supplying its justification and rationale as a developmental form of dictatorship for status-deprived nations languishing on the margins of the Great Powers. Gentile's "actualism" (as his philosophy came to be called) absorbed many intellectual currents of the early twentieth century, including nationalism, syndicalism, and futurism. He called the individual to an idealistic ethic of obedience, work, self-sacrifice, and national community in a dynamic rebellion against the perceived impostures of imperialism. This volume makes available some of his more significant writings produced shortly before and after the Fascist accession to power in Italy. With the consolidation of Fascist power, Gentile became the principal intellectual spokesman for the regime. Although signed by Mussolini, the philosophical portion of the official Doctrine of Fascism was in fact Gentile's work. What this text does not contain is at least as interesting as what it does. Gentile's nationalism and his political convictions were neither materialistic nor biological. They were neo-Hegelian in essence - a form of philosophical idealism.In his view, social change was determined by leaders or heroes who sense the inarticulate yet powerful impulses that move masses and that the masses are inspired not by material causes but by ideals. Italy's entry into World War I signified the completion of the Risorgimento, the redemption of the nation through dynamic action and the shedding of blood. Rejecting the old Italy of empty rhetoric, passivity, egoistic amorality, and anarchy, Gentile called for an Italy that was united and integral, with a faith in the grandeur of the nation. Although the conditions that gave rise to Gentile's thought have largely disappeared from Europe, his work remains instructive and may have a parallel in the kind of anti-democratic system that is likely to reemerge in the new century.

About the Author

A. James Gregor is professor of political science at the University of California, Berkeley, and adjunct professor at the United States Marine Corps University at Quantico, Virginia. He is the author of Giovanni Gentile: Philosopher of Fascism, Interpretations of Fascism, and Phoenix: Fascism in Our Time, all available from Transaction.