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Mussolini and Fascism: The View from America

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Mussolini, in the thousand guises he projected and the press picked up, fascinated Americans in the 1920s and the early '30s. John Diggins' analysis of America's reaction to an ideological phenomenon abroad reveals, he proposes, the darker side of American political values and assumptions.

Originally published in 1972.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These paperback editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

524 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1972

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About the author

John Patrick Diggins

31 books9 followers
John Patrick Diggins was a professor of history at the City University of New York Graduate Center, the author of more than a dozen books on widely varied subjects in American intellectual history.

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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
Profile Image for Christopher Saunders.
1,004 reviews929 followers
August 14, 2022
John Patrick Diggins' Mussolini and Fascism: The View from America provides a fascinating study of the Italian dictator's reception and reputation in America. Upon seizing power in 1922, Mussolini was embraced by a disturbing number of Americans, for a variety of reasons. Perhaps the nationalist pride of Italian-Americans is easy to understand; they viewed the Duce as reviving their homeland's fortunes and prestige, with the more fanatical among them forming bomb- and punch-throwing Blackshirted militia groups in New York, Philadelphia and elsewhere in emulation of their hero. Others, like conservatives (like the American Legion, whose director compared his followers to the squadistri) who respected Mussolini's anticommunism or Catholics who appreciated his embrace of the Church (ignoring his earlier anti-clerical rhetoric), can also be grasped, along with the Wall Street executives who viewed an oppressive but orderly Italy as good for business. Less creditable, and far more embarrassing, was the embrace of Mussolini by those who ought have known better: newspapers feted him as an exciting, dynamic figure (the Saturday Evening Post serialized his autobiography with glowing commentary); progressive intellectuals like Lincoln Steffens and Charles Beard viewed him offering a fascinating platform that might redeem the failures of liberal capitalism; even some of Franklin Roosevelt's inner circle, among them NRA director Hugh Johnson, found the Duce captivating. On the other hand, at least some on the Left saw Mussolini as a genuine threat: journalists Dorothy Thompson and George Seldes, radical labor organizer Carlo Tresca, New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia. But even these figures, courageous as many of them were, often saw Mussolini through a Marxist lens as the mere tool of industrialists, rather than representing a new and distinctly dangerous ideology.

Such ideologically skewed perspectives undoubtedly impacted how Americans viewed Mussolini, Diggins shows. But also playing their part were old-fashioned stereotypes. To Anglo-Saxon Americans, left and right, Italy was proverbially a nation of clowns and criminals, which either needed a strongman like Mussolini to guide them into the modern world, or deserved him as a manifestation of his excess. The rise of Hitler could be viewed with concern and trepidation, but Mussolini somehow seemed a natural extension of the "Italian character" (even as thousands of Italians were exiled, jailed or killed for opposing him, or Tresca led leftist immigrants in brawls against American fascists). Even as World War II approached, many Americans viewed Italian fascism as a moderating force checking Hitler's expansion. The majority, however, reverted to old stereotypes and dismissed Il Duce as the Fuhrerr's cartoon sidekick, which the incompetence of his military admittedly made easier; but it also ensured that Fascist Italy was never properly held accountable for its atrocities. Diggins' book is unlikely to be read outside of academics and specialists in fascism, but it's well worth diving into for showing how even the most repulsive dictatorships can serve as a Rorschach test - complicating our efforts to confront, understand and learn from them.
Profile Image for Rebecca.
278 reviews
February 27, 2021
This is a very detailed survey of the major publications about Mussolini and Fascism in general published in the U.S. from the 20s through the 1960s. Despite being old, it contains still-useful discussions of Italian American anti-fascist activism, sometimes startling revalations about pro-Mussolini views in business and govt, and a good overview of post-war academic analyses of fascism. It also has a detailed and useful bibliography through the many detailed footnotes.
Profile Image for Michael Compton.
Author 5 books156 followers
January 28, 2025
Well researched and documented account of America's reaction to Mussolini and his brand of Fascism. It's thorough, within its narrow focus, but I was surprised to find that the one thing I got the book for was not even covered--the "Oro alla Patria" campaign, in which Mussolini induced Italian American wives to send him their gold wedding rings to support his program. Skimming through most of the book, my main takeaway is how familiar and predictable it all sounds. Americans never warmed up to Hitler, but they had a lot of love for Mussolini, who was more ignorant, buffoonish, incompetent, and a bigger blowhard. Conservatives supported him, liberals tried to understand him, and progressives, for the most part, condemned him, often fracturing along lines of ethnic identity and pet ideas. Big Business was all in, and the Church had its enthusiastic supporters and harsh critics. Italians, for the most part, were glad to have a champion, which caused much debate in the Catholic Church. It also confused racists, who loved a fellow racist on the one hand, but hated Italians on the other. It's interesting to see how it breaks down among specific individuals and organizations. I was sad to learn that the great poet Wallace Stevens was not only a Fascist but a racist. His quote about the war in Ethiopia is truly shocking. Henry Miller loved Il Duce (jerk), but Hemingway was his most powerful literary critic. Elliott--no fan of democracy--loathed him as a pagan. Fitzgerald seemed to be most put off by his vulgarity. Hal Roach wanted to go in as partners in a new movie studio, but the outcry in Hollywood put an end to it. Roosevelt, ever the pragmatist, tried to cozy up to him in the hopes of keeping Italy out of the Axis. Mussolini was like a mirror that revealed the inner character of those who gazed upon him, much like a certain powerful bufoon who will go unmentioned here.
40 reviews1 follower
August 28, 2020
This was a very dry read. It has some good information in it, but it is better served as a reference than a book to read for historical enjoyment. The author doesn't understand the concept of "show, don't tell" when discussing the popularity of fascism in the U.S. He never gives many good examples to convey his points, and the lack of flow to his writing took me out of what is a fascinating subject.
Profile Image for Maria Strayer.
14 reviews4 followers
November 15, 2013
Interesting study of the image of Mussolini and Fascism in American during WWII. Diggins traces the relationship between American and Italy during from WWI up to the end of WWII looking at political relations, press and propaganda, and the giving special attention to the Italian-Americans caught in the middle. He demonstrates how despite emerging with a political system that opposed American democracy, Mussolini captivated both Americans and Italian. He contrasts the American attitude towards Germany to the attitude towards Italy to show this unique leniency and interest in Italian, and uses this to highlight the complications that arose in the mid to late 30s. Mussolini lifted Italy to the status of global power and strengthen Italian nationalism, yet his relations with Hitler and poor decisions in the 30s led to his downfall from tabloid celebrity to hated enemy in America, leaving those Italians in America who still supported their homeland as potential "enemies" as well. Very well written work. Wished he would have spent more time discussing the treatment of Italian-Americans in 1942 when Italians were added to the list of "enemy aliens," but otherwise, very interesting read!
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