The Fascist Tradition – John Weiss (1967)

Fascism arises as a result of a dialectical isolation of ideologies: radical leftism on the one pole, radical rightism on the other, each drawing constituency from the interstitial less extreme progressive and conservative masses. The radical right traces its lineage back to the feudal aristocracy, reluctantly forced to accept social reform following the triumph of liberal democracy that sprang from the enlightenment and French Revolution. The classical liberals were by no means the antecedents of the modern progressives and socialists however. Firm establishment of property rights and limited suffrage would found the basis for capitalism and its rapid successes during the 18th and 19th centuries, thus it is the conservative movement that shares the values of classical liberalism. The oppressive conditions capitalism subjected upon the working class spurred the radical socialist movement, and its companion reformist movement. Demands for universal suffrage, tolerable working conditions, wealth distribution, among others, and a growing fear of socialist revolution sparked a counter-reaction among conservatives in both Italy and Germany at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. Constituents of the conservatives included the industrialists, the aristocracy, as well as middle class shopkeepers, all of whom called upon their representatives to resist reform at any cost. Conservatives in turn resorted to commissioning radical rightist groups (e.g. blackshirts) to terrorize and violently disrupt the leftist movement. The growing necessity for reactionary measure allows for an organized fascist party to gradually gain power via traditional election (Mussolini and, to lesser extent, Hitler both seized power ultimately, though there was little to no resistance from the incumbency). The employment of deceptive, anti-semitic, racist rhetoric, the propagation of hyper-nationalist values, promise of increased welfare for the lower class, all work to turn sentiment in fascist favor. Racism, though not necessarily anti-semitism, and imperialism, are necessary conditions of fascism.