This presentation presents the overview and the origin of the two political concept, the political ideology of fascism and the type of leadership of totalitarian.

1. Comparative Government
and Politics
 Fascism vs
Totalitarianism
Ryan Cloyd Q. Villanueva, LPT
MAEd - Social Science

2. FASCISM
According to Robert Soucy, Fascism, political ideology and
mass movement that dominated many parts of central,
southern, and eastern Europe between 1919 and 1945 and that
also had adherents in western Europe, the United States, South
Africa, Japan, Latin America, and the Middle East.

3. At the end of World War II, the major European fascist parties
were broken up, and in some countries (such as Italy and West
Germany) they were officially banned. Beginning in the late
1940s, however, many fascist-oriented parties and movements
were founded in Europe as well as in Latin America and South
Africa. Although some European “neofascist” groups attracted
large followings, especially in Italy and France, none were as
influential as the major fascist parties of the interwar period.

4. WHAT IS FASCISM?
According to António Costa Pinto (2012) on his book, “The
Nature Of Fascism Revisited “, there are two point of view in
defining what is the nature of fascism.
1st – Citing Michael Mann, he views fascism in terms of key
values, actions, and power organizations of fascists. Most
concisely, fascism is the pursuit of a transcendent and
cleansing nation-statism through paramilitarism’. five key
terms, some with internal tensions, are nationalism, statism,
transcendence, cleansing, and paramilitarism.

5. 2nd – As cited in As
cited in Robert O.
Paxton’s article,
fascism is ‘primarily a
political phenomenon’
which adds that
‘Fascism in action
looks much more like
a network of
relationships than a
fixed essence’.

6. “Fascism may be defined as a form of political behavior
marked by obsessive preoccupation with community decline,
humiliation, or victimhood, and by compensatory cults of
unity, energy, and purity, in which a mass-based party of
committed nationalist militants, working in uneasy but
effective collaboration with traditional elite groups, abandons
democratic liberties and pursues with redemptive violence and
without ethical or legal restraints goals of internal cleansing
and external expansion.”

7. There will be two closely related, yet distinct variants of
fascism: Italian fascism and German fascism
(National Socialism or Nazism).

8. However, it is possible to outline some of the qualities which
all fascist movements have in common:
• Fascism claims to be anti-liberal; anti-conservative and anti-
communist.
• Fascism claims to be a ‘Third Way,’ rejecting both capitalism
and communism.
• Fascism strives to establish a nationalist, authoritarian
regime.

9. • Fascism rejects the idea of class struggle, offering
nationalism in its place. The idea of melding labor and
management into a nationalist whole is variously termed, in
fascist terminology, National Corporatism (the Corporate
State), National Socialism, or National Syndicalism.
• Fascism actively pursues imperialism and territorial
expansion.
• Fascism rejects reason and rationality, and embraces
irrationalism and romanticism. As such, fascism makes
extensive use of symbols, emblems, and uniforms.
• Fascism encourages the total militarization of society and
espouses a philosophy of ‘romantic violence.’

10. • Fascism creates private paramilitary militias.
• Fascism is extremely male supremacist, relegating women to
subservient roles in society.
• Fascism sees itself as a movement of the young, emphasizing
energy, health, vitality and generational conflict.
• Fascism promotes a charismatic, personalist, dictatorial style
of leadership; with the leader worshipped as a god-like
figure.

11. ORIGIN OF FASCISM
According to Alfonso Casal (2011) of “The Red Phoenix”, in
time of the Post War chaos, the social and political upheaval
that accompanied the end of World War I fused the various
attitudes (elitism, racism, and irrationalism, anti-modernism)
that characterized the radical right of the early years of the
century into a cohesive political movement, FASCISM.

12. In such occurrence of such political phenomenon, the power
of Benito Mussolini, a former socialist turned ultra - nationalist
comes into reality in the country of Italy. Nicknamed the
“Blackshirts,” Mussolini’s squads brutally attacked socialists,
communists, trade unionists and their sympathizers. Soon,
Mussolini’s squads attracted the attention of Italian
businessmen who saw them as their best guarantee against the
rising tide of revolution. With such action, supports and
financial assistance rained the administration of Mussolini.
Making use of all resources earned, the extreme
implementation of security was then functional. He was even
named as “the Leader”.

14. Through the use of his political power, his propaganda and
agenda intimidates the attention of the King of Italy which
made a result of making Mussolini as the prime Minister. And
the fascist dictatorship had begun.
As for the name ‘fascism’ itself, there is some dispute as to
its origin. On the one hand there is the Italian word fascio,
meaning a unit or detachment; on the other there is the fasces,
a symbol of state authority in ancient Rome that consisted of an
axe in a bundle of rods.

16. The fascists will take this ancient symbol and make it their
emblem. The fascist slogan of
“Credire! Obbedire! Combattire!” (“Believe! Obey! Fight!)

17. Embodied this sense of militarization as did the Fascist
Decalogue, which every school child had to memorize:
• Know that the Fascist and in particular the soldier, must not
believe in perpetual peace.
• Days of imprisonment are always deserved.
• The nation serves even as a sentinel over a can of petrol.
• A companion must be a brother, first, because he lives with
you, and secondly because he thinks like you.
• The rifle and the cartridge belt, and the rest, are confided to
you not to rust in leisure, but to be preserved in war.

18. • Do not ever say “The Government will pay . . . ” because it is
you who pay; and the Government is that which you willed
to have, and for which you put on a uniform.
• Discipline is the soul of armies; without it there are no
soldiers, only confusion and defeat.
• For a volunteer there are no extenuating circumstances
when he is disobedient.
• One thing must be dear to you above all: the life of the Duce.
• Mussolini is always right.

20. TOTALITARIANISM
According to Katie Cote of Stduy.com (2017), totalitarianism
is a form of government control that swept across Europe in
the early 20th century. It eventually spread to other parts of the
globe but is generally characterized by the major personalities
that helped to define totalitarianism. Leaders like Hitler, Stalin,
and Mussolini became synonymous with the control they held
over their nations and people.

21. Citing Luke Mastin (2008), Totalitarianism refers to
an authoritarian political system or state
that regulates and controls nearly every aspect of the public
and private sectors. Totalitarian regimes
establish complete political, social, and cultural control over
their subjects, and are usually headed by a charismatic leader.

22. In general, Totalitarianism involves a single mass party,
typically led by a dictator; an attempt to mobilize the entire
population in support of the official state ideology; and
an intolerance of activities which are not directed towards
the goals of the state, usually entailing repression and state
control of business, labor unions, churches and political
parties. A totalitarian regime is essentially a modern form of
authoritarian state, requiring as it does an advanced
technology of social control.

23. As added by Cote (2017), the essence of totalitarianism can
be found in its very name; it is a form of rule in which the
government attempts to maintain 'total' control over society,
including all aspects of the public and private lives of its
citizens.

24. There are several characteristics that are common to
totalitarian regimes, including:
• Rule by a single party
• Total control of the military
• Total control over means of communication (such as
newspapers, propaganda, etc…)
• Police control with the use of terror as a control tactic
• Control of the economy
However, even though there were common characteristics
of the different totalitarian regimes, it didn't look the same in
all countries in which it was employed.

25. HISTORY AND ORIGIN OF
TOTALITARIANISM
As written on the article of Luke Mastin (2008), It can be
argued that Totalitarianism existed millennia ago in
ancient China under the political leadership of Prime
Minister Li Si (280 - 208 B.C.), who helped the Qin
Dynasty unify China. Under the
ruling Legalism philosophy, political activities were severely
restricted, all literature destroyed, and scholars who did not
support Legalism were summarily put to death.

26. Other than this, it was also
manifested in the works of the
ancient philosopher, Plato.
Modern Philosophers were
also mentioned such as
Thomas Hobbes and Niccolo
Machiavelli where they had
also showed some examples
of having a totalitarian
government or leadership.

27. The term "Totalitarismo" was first
employed by "the philosopher of
Fascism" Giovanni Gentile (1875 -
1944) and Benito Mussolini (1883 -
1945) in mid-20th
century Fascist Italy. It was
originally intended to convey the
comforting sense of an "all-
embracing, total state", but it soon
attracted critical connotations and
unflattering comparisons
with Liberalism and democracy.