University of New Mexico/Fall Semester 2016

                                                                History 300, Section 012:  History of Fascism

Professor E. A. Sanabria

 

                                                                                    Midterm Study Guide

 

Examination Notes: The exam will take place on Tuesday, October 11th from 2-3:15PM.  Blue book(s) are required so purchase some today at the Bookstore, the SUB’s Mercado, or even downstairs at the Dane’s Deli.  The exam is a closed-book, closed-note test and covers material from the beginning of the course through the Thursday, October 6th lecture. The exam constitutes twenty (20) per cent of your final grade.  One important thing to remember is that the best exams show a distinctive and advanced level of sophistication and organization.  You should strive to go beyond regurgitating information from lectures and readings to try to write cogent and convincing essays. 

 

Examination Format: The exam is divided into three parts.  In Part One (15%), you will be provided a bank of key terms, and definitions. You are to match five (5) key words to their appropriate definition.  The key words in question have appeared in our lecture outlines which are available on our learn as well as here: 

 

http://www.unm.edu/~sanabria/lectureoutlines.htm

 

In Part Two (35%), I will provide you with two (2) extended passages from some of our many private sources (i.e. the Stone and Moeller compilation of sources, or from the Griffin, (ed.) book, provide you the name of their authors and the dates, and you must prepare a short essay in which you situate one (1) of the passages into a larger context, and also speak to the passage or the author’s importance to the study of fascism(s).  So, for example, if I excerpt parts of Document #47 in the Griffin book, you are to prepare a short essay explaining that Paul De Lagarde is a member of a group of late 19th century intellectuals who were highly critical of Bismarckian Germany specifically because of its liberal character and the presence of foreign elements, especially Jews, in the rapidly cosmopolitan German cities.  You would do well to make a connection between De Lagarde and the Volkisch nationalist movement that celebrated German distinctiveness at the expense of “Western values and traditions.” This celebration of the Volk and the anti-liberalism are a number of ideologies we’ve explored that don’t necessarily or precisely lead to fascism, but helps us understand the “soup” from which fascism arises.

 

In Part Three (50%), I will give you a selection of essay prompts (two or three) on which you are to write a cogent, well-organized, synthetic essay on one of the prompts provided.  Make sure that you write an essay that: 

 

·         Provides an appropriate, explicitly stated thesis that directly addresses all parts of the question and DOES NOT simply restate the question. Not having a thesis will be terribly damaging to getting a good score on this part of the exam.  One cannot understate the importance of a good thesis statement that crystallizes your arguments and sets the essay’s agenda.

·         While you will not have access to your books and notes, do allude to arguments, examples, or sources you may recall from the readings.

·         Uses a good network of topic sentences that organize your paragraphs and refer back to the thesis statement.

·         Basically, you are going to be asked to write an essay just like you were for your first paper only this time you have to do it on the fly.

 

Some important themes that I have developed over the course of the semester are included below.  You should be able discuss them based on your attendance in lectures as well as your reading. 

 

1)            The Crisis of Modernity and the Fin-de-Siècle Crisis—You should be able to write about the late 19th and early 20th thinkers, activists, and ideologues who were important to the study of fascism for a number of reason including but not limited to the fact that they articulated a fundamental critique to positivism, materialism, liberalism, and socialism. What are some of these ideologies? (Think: Social Darwinism, crowd psychology, eugenics, nationalism, socialism, Anti-Semitism, violence,and so on).

 

2)            Conservative/Authoritarian Nationalism—You should be able to write about late 19th and early 20th century political organizations of primarily conservative, often religious elites such as the Italian National Association or the Landowner Leagues in Germany that develop often xenophobic, anti-Semitic, anti-Socialist, highly exclusive forms of nationalism, and situate these groups within the context of fascist or fascistic movements that come after them.

 

3)            World War I – You should be able, once again, to have an appreciation for the dramatic changes and disruptions created by the Great War not just on soldiers, but also on the home front.  Do remember that the suspension of civil rights even in places like England, France, and the USA all in the interest of helping the nation, among other things, conditioned people to believe in or accept a larger more authoritarian state and its efficacy.  Do remember that, among other things, World War I, created new and unique subcultures among the men that fought in the War, which would make their transition to civilian life difficult at best.

 

4)            Italian Fascism – You should be able to write extensively about Italian fascism from its origins after World War I into the 1930s.  In what ways did the movement change from its original philosophical bearings?  In what way did Mussolini himself change over the course of time?  You should be able to speak to the relationship between the leader (Mussolini) and the various wings of Italian Fascism, such as the Ras.  You should be able to speak at length about how Italian Fascism comes to power, and how Mussolini manages the movement itself, as well as powerful institutions in Italy, like the monarchy, the Catholic Church, and so on.

 

5)            Nazism – just as with Italian Fascism you should be able to write extensively about Nazism from its post World War I origins through the 1930s.  In what ways did the movement change from its original philosophical bearings?  In what way did Hitler himself change over time?  You should be able to speak to the legal path to power that Hitler and the Nazis used to seize the state in 1933 as well as being able to write about how Hitler managed the Nazi party, as well as powerful institutions, movements, etc. in Germany like the conservative elites, the religious groups and Churches, the military, and even the problem posed by the SA.

 

6)            Dictators and Dictatorships – you should be able to write extensively about the political careers, styles, and accomplishments of Hitler and Mussolini including doing so in comparative fashion.  What were some of things that made Hitler similar to Mussolini?  What are some of the things that differentiated them?  Be able to write about the similarities and differences between the Mussolini and Hitler regimes once they were in power including the challenges each faced in establishing a “totalitarian state.”

 

7)       Women and fascism—Be able to apply your readings on fascism and women to write about the role of women in Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany.  What role did these political movements give to women? In what ways did fascist attitudes toward women, family, children change over time? How did these movements understand women as well as appeal to them?