Dollies for the Duce
The politics of playtime in Fascist Italy
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12548247 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Diana Garvin (0000-0003-1469-6953, University of Oregon, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2022 |
| Volume | 27 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 550-580 |
| Publication date | 2022-03-04 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Modern Italian Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1354-571X • E-ISSN: 1469-9583 |
| Publisher | Routledge (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/1354571x.2022.2031796 |
| OpenAlex | W4214949444 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 6 |
To foreground this study of early childhood play under Italian Fascism, this article opens by exploring the relationship between Fascism and youth culture in the broad terms of dictatorial governance and gendered approaches to the citizenry. Fascist demographic policy and projects centres this inquiry. First, legislation shows how low birthrates provided as a primary catalyst for the regime’s obsession with the rites of childhood. Then, architectural plans of nurseries and summer camps to demonstrate how Fascist youth policy took physical form. At the heart of the narrative lie three interlinked case studies of interwar toys. Moving the Balilla baby dolls to miniature muskets and pistols, I show how these toys prompted forms of play that were specific to life under the dictatorship. At stake in these playthings lies the Fascist pedagogy of play
Art · Corporate governance · Democracy · Dictatorship · Legislation · Literature · Management · Narrative · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Communism, Protests, Social Movements · Gender Studies · Historical Gender and Feminism Studies · History · Italian Fascism and Post-war Society · Law
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |