Origins and Doctrine of Fascism

Giovanni Gentile was the major theorist of Italian fascism. This volume brings together his major writings produced shortly before and after the fascist accession to power in Italy, representing the fusion of Actualism (as Gentile's philosophy came to be called) with Mussolini's fascism.

---

Giovanni Gentile (1875-1944) was the major theorist of Italian fascism, supplying its justificatory 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, and 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 brings together major writings produced shortly before and after the Fascist accession to power in Italy, representing the fusion of Actualism with Mussolini's fascism.