What is fascism?

By Mindy Weisberger July 17, 2021

Fascism is a political ideology that's actually pretty difficult to

define.

Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, left, and Adolf Hitler, the leader of Nazi Germany, led fascist movements in the
1930s and ‘40s. (Image credit: Fox Photos/Getty Images)

Fascism is a complex ideology. There are many definitions of fascism; some people
describe it as a set of political actions, a political philosophy or a mass movement.
Most definitions agree that fascism is authoritarian and promotes nationalism at all
costs, but its basic characteristics are a matter of debate. 

Fascism is commonly associated with the Italian and German regimes that came to
power after World War I, though other countries have also been ruled by fascist
regimes. Adolf Hitler in Germany, Benito Mussolini in Italy, Francisco Franco in
Spain and Juan Perón in Argentina were the most well-known fascist leaders of the
20th century.

Certain aspects of fascist rhetoric and political organization have shifted in the
decades that followed World War II. And fascism has further evolved in the political
landscape of the 21st century. However, core fascist ideologies and goals espoused by
the likes of Hitler and Mussolini are still present in populist organizations today, and
continue to shape fascist movements in countries around the world.
 DEFINITION OF FASCISM
Mussolini coined the term "fascism" in 1919.  The word "fascism" comes from the
Italian "fascio," meaning a bundle or group, and is considered a term for a militant
brotherhood. The word "fasces" means an ax tightly bound with sticks, an image that
became a symbol of the fascist movement, according to the History Department
at King's College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. 
How is fascism defined? Robert Paxton, a professor emeritus of social science at
Columbia University in New York, who is widely considered the father of fascism
studies, told Live Science that fascism is "a form of political practice distinctive to the
20th century that arouses popular enthusiasm by sophisticated propaganda
techniques."

According to Paxton, fascism uses such propaganda to promote:

 anti-liberalism, rejecting individual rights, civil liberties, free enterprise and

democracy
 anti-socialism, rejecting economic principles based on socialist frameworks
 exclusion of certain groups, often through violence
 nationalism that seeks to expand the nation's influence and power
Historically, fascists have opposed modernization "if that term means liberalism,
democracy, Marxism, individualism, and feminism," said historian Chris Wright, an
adjunct assistant professor at City University of New York. On the other hand, fascists
have favorited modernization "if the term means technological and economic
advancement, military superiority, efficiency, and the glorification of speed and
machines," Wright wrote in the essay "Reflections on Fascism," published on
ResearchGate in 2020, which has not yet been peer-reviewed. 
Fascism also reflects an intrinsic belief in human inequality, said journalist Shane
Burley, author of "Why We Fight: Essays on Fascism, Resistance, and Surviving the
Apocalypse" (AK Press, 2021) and "Fascism Today: What It Is and How to End
It" (AK Press, 2017). 
"The modern world is constructed under a mythology of human equality — even if
equality is not reached, and even if the people involved have no intention of reaching
it, it's still the underlying narrative in modern societies that human beings are equal,"
Burley told Live Science. 

Fascism, however, promotes the concept of innate inequality and inescapable social
hierarchies between groups, Burley said. Underlying this hierarchy is the idea that a
person's rank in society is determined by aspects of identity that are beyond their
control, such as ethnicity or gender, Burley explained.
 WHY IS FASCISM SO HARD TO DEFINE?
Fascism always takes on the individual characteristics of the country it is in, leading
to very different regimes. For instance, Paxton wrote in "The Five Stages of Fascism"
that "religion … would play a much greater role in authentic fascism in the United
States" than it would in the more secular Europe.

Further complicating matters, nonfascist governments have often mimicked elements

of fascist regimes to give the appearance of force and national vitality, Paxton said.
For example, mass mobilizations of citizens in colored shirts do not automatically
equate to a fascist political practice, he said. 

The prevalence of the word "fascism" in common vernacular also causes definitional
problems. In recent years, the term "is used more often as a political insult than as a
historically-informed analytical term," according to The Lowy Institute, an Australian
think tank in Sydney.
And while all fascist movements are far right, not all far right movements are fascist,
Burley said.

Unlike most other political, social or ethical philosophies — such as communism,

capitalism, conservatism, liberalism or socialism — fascism does not have a set
philosophy. As Paxton wrote, "There was no 'Fascist Manifesto,' no founding fascist
thinker." Gilbert Allardyce, a professor emeritus of history at the University of New
Brunswick in Canada, described the term "fascism" as elusive and "a mulish concept"
that frustrated historians, even as they continued to use it.

"Put simply, we have agreed to use the word without agreeing on how to define it,"
Allardyce wrote in an article published in 1979 in the journal The American Historical
Review.
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Though fascism's definition can be elusive, all fascist movements share some core
beliefs and actions.

FASCISM'S CHARACTERISTICS
Fascism requires some basic allegiances, such as to the nation and to a gatekeeping
"master race" or group. The core principle — what Paxton defined as fascism's only
definition of morality — is to make the nation stronger, more powerful, larger and
more successful. Since fascists see national strength as the only thing that makes a
nation "good," fascists will use any means necessary to achieve that goal. 
 As a result, fascists aim to use the country's assets to increase the country's strength.
This often leads to a nationalization of assets, and in this, fascism resembles Marxism
— an anti-capitalist economic, philosophical and political framework of beliefs that
promote a classless society, according to the Center for the Study of Language and
Information at Stanford University in California.
Guided by the principle of extreme nationalism, fascist regimes tend to perform
similar actions, though the particulars differ, author George Orwell wrote in his
essay "What Is Fascism?" According to Paxton, who has written several books on the
subject, including "The Anatomy of Fascism" (Vintage, 2005), these regimes make
use of grand gestures, such as parades and leaders' dramatic entrances. 
Fascists also excel at propaganda, using it as a tool to scapegoat certain groups;
however, those groups may differ from country to country. For instance, the Nazi
regime demonized Jews and other ethnic minorities, such as the Romani people, while
Mussolini's Italian regime targeted Bolsheviks — radical, far-left Marxists. (Mussolini
worked regularly with Jews, and his mistress, Margherita Sarfatti, was Jewish, though
she later converted to Catholicism. Because of Mussolini's alliance with Hitler, he did
eventually incorporate antisemitic components into his regime, and Sarfatti fled Italy
in 1938 after Mussolini began passing antisemitic legislation, according to the Jewish
Women's Archive. But overall, Mussolini differed from Hitler on the subject of
biological racism.)
Related: What are the different types of governments?
Paxton also said that fascism is based more on feelings than philosophical ideas
(which may explain why fascism can be hard to define). In his 1988 essay "The Five
Stages of Fascism," published in 1998 in the Journal of Modern History, he defined
seven "mobilizing passions" for fascist regimes. They are:
1. The primacy of the group. Supporting the group feels more important than
maintaining individual rights.
2. Believing that one's group is a victim. This justifies any behavior against the
group's enemies.
3. The belief that individualism and liberalism enable dangerous decadence and
have a negative effect on the group.  
4. A strong sense of community or brotherhood.
5. Individual self-esteem is tied to the perceived greatness of the group. Paxton
called this an "enhanced sense of identity and belonging."
6. Extreme support of a "natural" leader, who is typically male. This results in one
man taking on the role of national savior. 
7. Affinity for "the beauty of violence and of will, when they are devoted to the
group's success in a Darwinian struggle," Paxton wrote. The idea of a naturally
superior group or, especially in Hitler's case, biological racism, fits into a fascist
interpretation of Darwinism. 
Once in power, "fascist dictatorships suppressed individual liberties, imprisoned
opponents, forbade strikes, authorized unlimited police power in the name of national
unity and revival, and committed military aggression," Paxton wrote.