ABSTRACT
As we saw in selection 7.49, the Italian fascists took pains to distinguish their political ideology from liberalism and socialism. By stressing their differences with liberalism and socialism—and by rejecting democracy—they tried to define a coherent and distinctive fascist ideology. This task fell to intellectuals such as Alfredo Rocco (1875–1935), the author of the following selection. Rocco was a professor of law and a theorist for the Italian National Association, which was a precursor of the Italian Fascist Party. He subsequently joined the Fascist Party and served as minister of justice in Mussolini’s government.
