Fascism and dictatorship Book

Fascism and Dictatorship: The Third International and the Problem of Fascism is a fascinating study of both the German and Italian strains of fascism in the interwar period and the errors made by the Comintern as it tried - and failed - to halt its rise. Nicos Poulantzas argues that fascism represents an "exceptional state" within capitalist society and seeks to assess the relationship between it and the working class, all the while charting the way in which it rose to power in two different but nonetheless connected ways.

Particularly interesting are the chapters on fascism's relationship to the petty bourgeoisie and the countryside, as well as Poulantzas's stellar examination of the characteristics of the fascist state. He also offers important analysis on the failings of the Comintern, which, misguided in its attitudes and strategies, struggled to fully understand the nature of fascism and its relationship to the different sections of society.

Poulantzas's approach to the subject is both in-depth and illuminating, and it is no wonder that Fascism and Dictatorship: The Third International and the Problem of Fascism remains one of the classic Marxist texts in the field of fascist studies.