Summary HIST 410N Week 2 Assignment: Essay – Video Analysis | Video Analysis: Benito Mussolini (solution)

Week 2 Assignment: Essay – Video Analysis Hist410 Chamberlain College of Nursing May-2021 Week 2 Video Analysis: Benito Mussolini This video provides information on Italy’s Benito Mussolini. Mussolini was thought to be a small-time autocrat who ruled under the guidance of Hitler and Stalin, and everything he knew was taught to him by Hitler (Dictators playbook, 2015). In fact, it's the opposite, his tactics of undermining judges, to indoctrinating children, were used by other dictators to seize power. His ideology of fascism, which is founded by violence, oppressing individual rights and suppressing those who are against him, led Europe into a period of fear and chaos (Dictators playbook, 2015). Benito Mussolini was born in 1883 in Predappio, a village in northern Italy. His father was a blacksmith and his family lived in poverty. His childhood was spent in a violent environment which had an effect on his upbringing. At a very young age he was involved in serious crimes like stabbing his fellow student at school and got expelled. He became a frequent flyer in the prison. During that period, a vast majority of Italians were moving abroad to seek a better future. He was determined to make conditions better in Italy by any means possible. Besides his violent nature he was a talented writer, and he knew how to use these skills to motivate, play and create fear among people, which he believed would improve Italy’s condition. A newspaper publication ‘Popolo D ’Italia’ launched him socially and gathered Italians to gain power over the people (, 2018). People began to show interest in his thoughts and started 2 This study source was downloaded by from CourseH on 10-18-2023 23:56:04 GMT -05:00 HIGH FLYER VIDEO ANALYSIS believing that by accepting fascism and abandoning democracy, Italy can be brought out of the crisis. Mussolini interpreted himself as a savior who has a solution for all the problems. He was successful in gaining support from industrialists, landowners and common people which allowed him to create jobs in the government operated businesses. He was removed from socialist party for supporting the participation of Italy in battle and made Fascist party after the war. His skill of creating fears of unemployment, chaos and political domination by the lower class gained him followers among the middle class and veterans (, 2018). He described Fascist as a person who accepts life and loves it and assumes life as duty, struggle and conquest. He also described Fascism as to believe in holiness and heroism, actions that have no financial motive and uses the term ‘Fascism combats...democracy’. What looked interesting to me was fascist foreign policy because it led to the support of fascist government by Italians. Mussolini’s governing policies can be divided into monetary, political and social policies. After his famous ‘March on Rome’ Mussolini officially became the prime minister of Italy, but lacked the full control (, 2021). He asked for full power for one year in his first campaign and worked for dissolving the parliament if individuals deny participation. Individuals who were assigned by Mussolini while creating the Great Council, played a major role in disbanding prior administration, their policies and finally made the police capitulate to the power of Benito Mussolini’s black shirts.