Alternatives to Democracy in Twentieth-Century Europe: Collectivist Visions of Modernity

__Alternatives to Democracy__ in Twentieth-Century Europe examines the historical examples of Soviet Communism, Italian Fascism, German Nazism, and Spanish Anarchism, suggesting that, in spite of their differences, they had some key features in common, in particular their shared hostility to individualism, representative government, laissez faire capitalism, and the decadence they associated with modern culture. But rather than seeking to return to earlier ways of working these movements and regimes sought to design a new future – an alternative future – that would restore the nation to spiritual and political health. The Fascists, for their part, specifically promoted palingenesis, which is to say the spiritual rebirth of the nation. The book closes with a long epilogue, in which Ramet defends liberal democracy, highlighting its strengths and advantages. In this chapter, the author identifies five key choke points, which would-be authoritarians typically seek to control, subvert, or instrumentalize: electoral rules, the judiciary, the media, hate speech, and surveillance, and looks at the cases of Viktor Orbán’s Hungary, Jarosław Kaczyński’s Poland, and Donald Trump’s United States. "An original work of historical synthesis by an esteemed international scholar, this book offers the first comparative analysis of the four different types of collectivism (communism, Fascism; Nazism; anarchism) in twentieth-century Europe which aspired to create an 'alternative modernity'. The author presents not only the authoritarian alternatives to democracy of the past century, but also the experiment with anarchism undertaken in Spain in the late 1930s. The concept of the analysis is to show how these political systems are driven by rival visions of alternative modernity and how the prioritization of values plays out in politics. Each political concept discussed in the book found support among broad sectors of its respective population at one time or another, and were championed by professionals in the countries in which they took hold. The political vision which guided the construction (or in the anarchist case, attempted construction) of an alternative to democracy, oriented to an alternative future, is discussed in a balanced and erudite manner in each case. Debates within the participants in these projects are also focused. The book ends with a defense of liberal democracy, exploring departures from it in contemporary Hungary and Poland, but also the US"-- Provided by publisher

Alternatives to Democracy in Twentieth-Century Europe examines the historical examples of Soviet Communism, Italian Fascism, German Nazism, and Spanish Anarchism, suggesting that, in spite of their differences, they had some key features in common, in particular their shared hostility to individualism, representative government, laissez faire capitalism, and the decadence they associated with modern culture. But rather than seeking to return to earlier ways of working these movements and regimes sought to design a new future – an alternative future – that would restore the nation to spiritual and political health. The Fascists, for their part, specifically promoted palingenesis, which is to say the spiritual rebirth of the nation. The book closes with a long epilogue, in which Ramet defends liberal democracy, highlighting its strengths and advantages. In this chapter, the author identifies five key choke points, which would-be authoritarians typically seek to control, subvert, or instrumentalize: electoral rules, the judiciary, the media, hate speech, and surveillance, and looks at the cases of Viktor Orbán's Hungary, Jaros?aw Kaczy?ski's Poland, and Donald Trump's United States.

Table of Contents Acknowledgments Preface CHAPTER 1 Rival Visions of Alternative Modernity: An Introduction CHAPTER 2 An Evolving Vision of an Alternative Modernity: Soviet Communism CHAPTER 3 The Quest for an Alternative Modernity: Fascism and Nazism, Part I CHAPTER 4 The Quest for an Alternative Modernity: Fascism and Nazism, Part II CHAPTER 5 The Quest for Freedom and Solidarity: Anarchism in Spain CHAPTER 6 Epilogue. In Defense of Liberal Democracy —And a Warning Glossary Further Reading About the Author Name index Subject index