ADM 1122, Ders Notları: The Notions Key to Fascism and Nazism (Lecture 11.03.2010)

there were several notions very key to the nazi and fascist ideology which largely defined the beliefs these political thoughts systems stood upon.

the first were the notion of race. french author arthur de gobineau detailed his idea of aryan racism which was widely supported and actively applied by the nazi administration. this idea of race referred both to the physical and spiritiual/intellectual characteristics as definitive distinctions of a race. according to this idea, everything, including the fate of a race was already coded by genetics. every race had a place in the world and wars must be sought if the purity of races were threatened.

a pseudo-science of measuring race; crainology was also popular during the height of the nazi reign. according to this idea, race and intellectual superiority had a distinct correlation; i.e. some races were genetically more intelligent than others. the origins of this ideal dates back to the concept of "volk" in the german nation. this concept included the folklore and the identity of the german nation. this fondness of self later influenced the nazi ideals, mixing with the idea of race.

another notion quite key to the ideology was the notion of citizenship. although fascism was an elitist ideology, it pushed for the participation of the masses, but this participation was not the same with the concept of participation in democracy which demands its citizens to participate in the elections to decide their own fates, instead, nazi understanding of participation was a show of the loyalty of the masses. rallies and marches were treated as proofs of the national unity, which was essentially the idea that individuals did not exist, only the state did.

the notion of structure in fascism was incredibly centralized, allowing no other power centres and suppressing and eliminating all other possible sources of power. in line with this idea, the concept of corporatism was also in application. according to corporatism, each section of the economy should have an administrative body overseeing the private business owners, allowing both the capital owners and the state to control the working class.

another interesting nuance within the ideology is the notion of change. unlike conservatism, fascism believes in sudden and even revolutionary changes and their use in the economical and political processes. while conservatism opposes all immediate changes, fascism uses direct shifts, disregarding everything, including the historical continuity which conservatism highly regards, to reach a certain goal.