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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
How might a history of fascism and antifascism in interwar Europe help us with an understanding of the dangers of the radical Right today? In this talk Geoff Eley will be moving back and forth between the early 20th century past and the 21st century present in order to establish what is equivalent and what is not, what is common and what is distinct in these two historical settings in order to build a usable concept for the purposes of politics today. Given the ease with which "fascism" can be used as a slogan, as an emotional rallying-point, as a language of recognition and abuse, and as a boundary of legitimate political thinking and action, it becomes vital to sort through the appropriate distinctions as carefully as possible. To lay the ground for effective politics, one needs historical grounded analysis that can avert tendentious conflations, merely formal and surface similarities, and chains of equivalence that seem outwardly plausible and may be emotionally satisfying, but stop short of showing how fascism is able to gain its purchase and build its appeal. One needs to grasp not just the specific ideas and practices that separate fascists from their rivals, but also the particular contexts that give them popularity and a credible claim on power. What are the circumstances that enable fascists to offer themselves as an effective and desirable "extra-systemic" solution for problems, as an alternative to the given practices of pluralism, negotiation, and coalition-building associated with democratic constitutionalism? What kind of crisis brings fascism onto the agenda? What is the character of the "fascism-producing crisis"? By historicizing fascism to the early 20th-century circumstances of its inception, Geoff Eley wants to abstract a workable general definition, one that can be "portable" across time and space and serve us for political action now.
Information on participating / attending:
Date:
11/01/2017 18:30 - 11/01/2017 20:00
Event venue:
Zentralgebäude der Leuphana-Universität Lüneburg, Libeskind-Auditorium
Universitätsallee 1
21335 Lüneburg
Hamburg
Germany
Target group:
Scientists and scholars, Students
Email address:
Relevance:
transregional, national
Subject areas:
History / archaeology, Social studies
Types of events:
Presentation / colloquium / lecture
Entry:
10/27/2017
Sender/author:
Victoria Romano
Department:
Direktion
Event is free:
yes
Language of the text:
English
URL of this event: http://idw-online.de/en/event58826
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