Benedetto Croce and Italian Fascism
2004; Cambridge University Press; Volume: 25; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
10.33137/q.i..v25i2.9201
ISSN2293-7382
Autores Tópico(s)Italian Fascism and Post-war Society
ResumoCroce and Italian Fascism closes a gap in the his- toriography on fascism and illuminates the gray area of tension where culture and politics, freedom and coercion coexist.In a broad ideological framework, this book may be placed within the revisionist movement initiated by the eminent his- torian Renzo De Felice.The aim of this school is to re-evaluate, in light of new documents and sober meditation, some aspects of fascism and of Mussolini's inter- national and domestic policies.Within this perspective, the philosopher Benedetto Croce becomes somehow larger than life and, in Rizi's words, stands as the "symbol of the resistance" to fascism.Apart from the introduction, Rizi's book can be divided into three main the- matic parts.The first (35-79) analyses Croce's reasons for participating as Minister of Education in Giovanni Giolitti's government of 1920-21 and the turbulent years (1921)(1922)(1923)(1924) when Croce lent his senatorial support and intellectual prestige to Mussolini and fascism, even after the brutal assassination of the socialist leader Giacomo Matteotti.The second part (80-212) explores the years of the dictator- ship proper: from Mussolini's speech of 3 January 1925, that officially inaugurat- ed state repression, to World War II, the period of Croce's prudent but firm oppo- sition to fascism.The third and final part probes the background lead- ing to Croce's ministerial responsibility in 1944, in General Badoglio's govern- ment-a government in which all the antifascist parties, even the Communist Party, were represented.In the Introduction, the reader learns that Croce was the heir of a wealthy family from Abruzzo that settled in Naples and became well connected to the local aristocracy.To his family's social status and wealth.Croce added his own high intellectual prestige and revenues from royalties for his many successful books.Recensioni end: unable to navigate through the treacherous, fascist political waters, their philosophical ship floundered and its helmsmen parted ways.Embracing fascism, Gentile theorized the use of the "manganello" (cudgel) to induce stubborn individuals to change their mind and become socially healthy, while Croce, who initially supported fascism, moved decisively in the opposite direction and defended individual freedom.Croce's writing career during the dictatorship is thoroughly documented throughout Rizi's book.Croce continued to write and publish books, essays, and his biting periodical, La Critica, which came out every two months.In an implic- it (never explicit) polemic against the regime, in all his works Croce maintained that freedom and only freedom is the true protagonist of human destiny.Because of his unwavering stand, he became a standard-bearer for the moderate antifascists
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