The Totalitarian Experiment in Twentieth Century Europe

Understanding the Poverty of Great Politics

Bibliographic Data

ID19946282
AuthorsDavid Roberts (0000-0002-5669-5011), David D Roberts (0000-0002-2481-2981, University of Georgia, corresponding author)
Year2006
Pages591
Publication date2006-04-27
Open AccessNo
TypeBOOK
VenueTotalitarian Experiment in Twentieth Century Europe (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherRoutledge (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.4324/9780203087848
OpenAlexW4232287984
ISBN9780203087848
Open LibraryOL53884499M
LanguageEN
Citations received17

By developing a long-term supranational perspective, this ambitious, multi-faceted work provides a new understanding of ‘totalitarianism’, the troubling common element linking Soviet communism, Italian fascism and German Nazism. The book’s original analysis of antecedent ideas on the subject sheds light on the common origins and practices of the regimes. Through this fresh appreciation of their initial frame of mind, Roberts demonstrates how the three political experiments yielded unprecedented collective mobilization but also a characteristic combination of radicalization, myth-making, and failure. Providing deep historical analysis, the book proves that 'totalitarianism' best characterizes the common features in the originating aspirations, the mode of action and even the outcomes of Soviet communism, Italian fascism and German Nazism. By enhancing our knowledge of what ‘totalitarianism’ was and where it came from, Roberts affords important lessons about the ongoing challenges, possibilities, and dangers of the modern political experiment

Political science · History · Italian Fascism and Post-war Society · Communism · Fascism · Italy · National socialism · Soviet Union · Totalitarianism

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