256 pages
English language
Published Feb. 2, 2020 by Random House Publishing Group.
As the child of refugees of World War II Europe and a renowned philosopher and scholar of propaganda, Jason Stanley has a deep understanding of how democratic societies can be vulnerable to fascism: Nations don’t have to be fascist to suffer from fascist politics. In fact, fascism’s roots have been present in the United States for more than a century. Alarmed by the pervasive rise of fascist tactics both at home and around the globe, Stanley focuses here on the structures that unite them, laying out and analyzing the ten pillars of fascist politics—the language and beliefs that separate people into an “us” and a “them.” He knits together reflections on history, philosophy, sociology, and critical race theory with stories from contemporary Hungary, Poland, India, Myanmar, and the United States, among other nations. He makes clear the immense danger of underestimating the cumulative power of these tactics, which include exploiting …
As the child of refugees of World War II Europe and a renowned philosopher and scholar of propaganda, Jason Stanley has a deep understanding of how democratic societies can be vulnerable to fascism: Nations don’t have to be fascist to suffer from fascist politics. In fact, fascism’s roots have been present in the United States for more than a century. Alarmed by the pervasive rise of fascist tactics both at home and around the globe, Stanley focuses here on the structures that unite them, laying out and analyzing the ten pillars of fascist politics—the language and beliefs that separate people into an “us” and a “them.” He knits together reflections on history, philosophy, sociology, and critical race theory with stories from contemporary Hungary, Poland, India, Myanmar, and the United States, among other nations. He makes clear the immense danger of underestimating the cumulative power of these tactics, which include exploiting a mythic version of a nation’s past; propaganda that twists the language of democratic ideals against themselves; anti-intellectualism directed against universities and experts; law and order politics predicated on the assumption that members of minority groups are criminals; and fierce attacks on labor groups and welfare. These mechanisms all build on one another, creating and reinforcing divisions and shaping a society
By uncovering disturbing patterns that are as prevalent today as ever, Stanley reveals that the stuff of politics—charged by rhetoric and myth—can quickly become policy and reality. Only by recognizing fascists politics, he argues, may we resist its most harmful effects and return to democratic ideals.
A quick look at the political tools of fascism, this book is a great starting point if you've never really bothered to take a look at what fascism is and how it works. Much of the extreme rhetoric you're hearing today will make a whole lot more sense in the context of this book.
This book is absolutely essential reading. A concise exposition of fascist ideology and politics with historical and modern examples, this text contextualises the political developments in the US over the past decades and demonstrates why calling the current dominant ideology of the Republican party 'fascist' is neither ab exaggeration nor a slur, but a statement of fact.
Addendum: Those dismissing this book because of a "leftwing bias" or because it's "anti-rightwing" should really take a long hard look at what they actually believe themselves.
I found this book a clear description of fascism. Scanning the table of contents summarizes the book's points, and I recommend that everyone read at least that much. The book's body, with its constant references to the politics of the day, scared the bejeezus out of me. I worry the references to current events may make the book quickly seem dated. That would be a shame.
Fantastic read. But the reality it reveals is somewhat depressing. There seem to be two completely incompatible views of people’s worth: for fascists, people are only valuable for what they procure for society or how they benefit the fascists. For liberalism: people have inherent value. These two disparate world views seem to explain fascists and supporters turning a blind eye to even unspeakable horrors.
Liberals are at a distinct disadvantage playing by the rules and telling the truth. Truth does not matter to fascists. In fact, this book explains how to understand even irrational narratives like pizzagate as a tool used to represent feelings and a consistent worldview — not at all intended to convey objective reality. The stories are useful for political purposes - not unlike the fascist supporters who eat up the lies authoritarians tell them, so long as they comport with their core beliefs (such as how …
Fantastic read. But the reality it reveals is somewhat depressing. There seem to be two completely incompatible views of people’s worth: for fascists, people are only valuable for what they procure for society or how they benefit the fascists. For liberalism: people have inherent value. These two disparate world views seem to explain fascists and supporters turning a blind eye to even unspeakable horrors.
Liberals are at a distinct disadvantage playing by the rules and telling the truth. Truth does not matter to fascists. In fact, this book explains how to understand even irrational narratives like pizzagate as a tool used to represent feelings and a consistent worldview — not at all intended to convey objective reality. The stories are useful for political purposes - not unlike the fascist supporters who eat up the lies authoritarians tell them, so long as they comport with their core beliefs (such as how liberals are actually mortal enemies of freedom,etc.)
A good primer for what fascism is and how it works but you’re swimming in the shallow end here. So a good start but you’re going want to follow-up with a deeper dive into the topic.
Ten short and sweet chapters, delivering on the title. Written as an overview for a wide audience, this falls under the genre of handbooks for the current global climate, like Snyder’s On Tyranny and Gessen’s Surviving Autocracy. Like Snyder, Stanley is also a professor at Yale lending his cautionary advice to the current moment.
This is key reading for understanding the barrage of changes that accompany a power grab, and especially helpful in understanding those who support the attempts despite all odds. Each topic flows into the next, highlighting the power of creeping fascism. The author includes historical parallels and insight into modern applications. His topics aren’t anything new on the subject, but this is likely the clearest and most direct collection of them.
"The most telling symptom of fascist politics is division. It aims to separate a population into an 'us' and a 'them.’"
"...the invention of a …
Ten short and sweet chapters, delivering on the title. Written as an overview for a wide audience, this falls under the genre of handbooks for the current global climate, like Snyder’s On Tyranny and Gessen’s Surviving Autocracy. Like Snyder, Stanley is also a professor at Yale lending his cautionary advice to the current moment.
This is key reading for understanding the barrage of changes that accompany a power grab, and especially helpful in understanding those who support the attempts despite all odds. Each topic flows into the next, highlighting the power of creeping fascism. The author includes historical parallels and insight into modern applications. His topics aren’t anything new on the subject, but this is likely the clearest and most direct collection of them.
"The most telling symptom of fascist politics is division. It aims to separate a population into an 'us' and a 'them.’"
"...the invention of a glorious past includes the erasure of inconvenient realities. While fascist politics fetishizes the past, it is never the actual past that is fetishized."
"Fascist politics seeks to undermine public discourse by attacking and devaluing education, expertise, and language."
"Fascist politics thrives off the resulting sense of aggrieved loss and victimization that results from the ever more tenuous and difficult struggle to defend a sense of cultural, ethnic, religious, gendered, or national superiority."
"There are more reasons why fascist ideology targets labor unions. Fascist politics is most effective under conditions of stark economic inequality."
