Q1 :Benito Mussolini became the first fascist dictator in Europe, coming to power in Italy shortly after the First World War. He was known as Il Duce, or the leader. View the following clip of one of his speeches. Even if you can’t understand Italian, analyze how he speaks. What persona does he convey?
Q2:Defining fascism this has been difficult to do, as each nation case was very different. For example, it was possible to be a Jewish Fascist in Italy because Italian fascism was not inherently anti-Semitic and only adopted anti-Semitic policies when Mussolini and Hitler established an alliance. By contrast, the idea of a Jewish Nazi is obviously absurd, as one of the pillars of Nazism was anti-Semitism. Fascists also scorned the idea of establishing a program to be followed, believing instead that their actions should be led by the will of the nation or the leader. Robert Paxton is one of the experts on fascism. Read the attached excerpt in which he describes fascism.
Based on Paxton’s description, compile a bulleted list of characteristics defining fascism in your own words.
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