Fascism's Return

The past fifteen years have witnessed the renewed presence of fascism in European political and cultural life. In addition, there have been scandals surrounding the fascist pasts of numerous renowned intellectuals, including Martin Heidegger, Paul de Man, and Maurice Blanchot.

In Fascism’s Return, eleven leading American and European scholars examine the resurgence of fascism from many angles, providing an essential and timely view of this troubling moment in European political, cultural, and intellectual history. Intellectual and public scandals surrounding the fascist past—including the highly publicized Barbie and Touvier trials in France—are addressed. Other writers focus on controversial efforts to revise the historical representation of fascism in Germany and France. The reemergence of the “new” fascist movements and ideologies in various European nations is also examined. A final essay considers the controversial U. S. support during the 1980s of Central American dictatorships.

As editor Richard J. Golsan notes, the essays in this volume “illustrate a multitude of ways in which fascism continues to make its presence felt in western democratic societies, erupting with disturbing frequency as a ‘return of the repressed’ in judicial and artistic scandals as well as in historical, critical, and political debates.”