548 Reviews may be tested in practice. Using the Waltz’s Burszta’s and Antonina Kłoskowska’s analysis’ levels concept Wawrzyński has concepts to satisfy the research needs of described myth-based processes and the political science. And itself it is praisewor- social distribution of knowledge during thy. But it is even more commendable, the war. Even if sometimes interpretative because his intellectual ordeal yields sat- methodologies have been criticized as isfying and inspiring results. speculative, Wawrzyń ski’s one deserves to Summing up, the Patryk Wawrzyński’s be considered by political scientists. book merits recommendation; in short it Crucial meaning for the importance of can be described as instructive, interest- reviewed work has an extension of biblio- ing, and a well-written monograph from graphical sources; Wawrzyński has the borderland of sciences. Even if the fi rst decided to refer to cultural anthropology, chapter seems to be too much a review of philosophy of culture and sociology and diff erent concepts and defi nitions, it is still adapted other discipline’s and achieve- a valuable theoretical introduction to ments into political science. Probably, he subsequent studies. Time spent on the is one of the few that has attempted to lecture of this book will not be lost, quite interpret Cassirer’s, Eliade’s, Kołakowski’s, the contrary it will be a good choice, both Malinowski’s, Levi-Strauss’ or Wojciech for academics and students. A book review: Luciano Canfora, Andrea Giardina, Chiara Frugoni, Alessandro Barbero, Alberto Mario Banti, Emilio Gentile, Andrea Graziosi, Vittorio Vidotto, Giovanni Sabbatucci, Andrea Riccardi, Michelle Perrot, I Volti Del Potere , Roma-Bari: Editori Laterza, 2010, pp. 318 by Agnieszka Latosińska ! e book I Volti Del Potere (Eng. ! e In the opinion of the author of the Faces of Power ) is a collective work con- reviewed book, the most interesting is sisting of eleven chapters. ! e authors in chapter VI dedicated to Benito Mussolini an interesting way present the political and Fascism. fates and changes made by the great ! ere is a complicated complexity in heroes of history, as well as the pros and the relationship between Mussolini and cons of their governments, the stigma of Fascism. ! ese relations started a new which is o" en felt to this day. system of governance in Italy a" er 1922. Reviews 549 To characterize them, you must follow the Most anti-fascist activists didn’t realize victory in the political biography of Mus- the real power of fascism. Not many peo- solini and also the history of fascism in ple were fully aware of the threat fascism the years prior to their rise to power. posed to parliamentary democracy and to e origins of Fascism reaches back Italians themselves. e extremely short to March 23, 1919 when Benito Musso- period of time that elapsed since the crea- lini established Fascia di combattimento tion of the National Fascist Party to their (Eng. Leagues of Combat ), originally takeover of power was the factor that numbering about fi ! y members. At the allows us to understand why part of the end of 1919, the number of people conservative supporters of fascism and reached 800 throughout Italy. After anti-fascists did not recognize the true defeat in the November elections that nature of fascism. is short period of same year, Mussolini was close to leaving time also allows us to understand Mus- politics. Ultimately he continued to solini’s motives in setting up the one-party engage in political activities aimed at his system. ascent to power. Mussolini’s government was offi cially At the end of 1921 Mussolini made sanctioned by the Constitution, as con- himself known to the public as II Duce, fi rmed through a vote of confi dence by standing as the head of his created Italian parliament, although it must be clearly Fascist Party, resulting from the conver- stated that the method Mussolini used to sion of the Leagues of Combat with come to power was not a parliamentary around 150,000 members. method, but rather revolutionary. e fast success that fascism achieved In reality, Mussolini’s assignment to a! er 1920 and its transformation into create the government was not the spon- a mass movement was not only due to the taneous and autonomous decision of King initiative and capabilities of Mussolini. Victor Emmanuel III. e king was forced Fascism but owes its success to the vio- to do so, under the threat of using force by lence and brutality of armed militias the Fascists and their armed militias - the whose activity was led by local leaders, fascists, had only about thirty members in most of them very young, enjoying the Parliament. prestige and personal authority among the e revolutionary and novel way that fascist masses in their provinces. Mussolini came to power was based on A year later on October 29, 1922 Mus- the fact that never before had any parlia- solini received the task of forming a new mentary country had as its Prime Minister government from King Victor Emmanuel the leader of armed bands, organized into III. is was undoubtedly Mussolini’s a party, who publicly declared that the age personal success. At the age of 39 he of democracy was fi nished, that the liberal became the Prime Minister of the Italian state had ceased to exist and that parlia- Government. mentarism as such is dead. 550 Reviews Around this same time the liberal, anti- dominated the Italian political scene for fascist Giovanni Amendola used the term a period of about twenty years. totalitarian for the fi rst time to describe Mussolini was the fi rst dictator of the fascist methods. ! is became a popular twentieth century revered by the masses. term in the vocabulary of anti-fascists in In Italy his strong personality cult devel- Italy. It was also used by one of the greatest oped as a charismatic leader, capable of Catholic anti-fascist activists, Father Luigi assuring the country a strong position in Sturzo, forced by Mussolini’s regime to the international arena. resign from leading the Italian People’s ! e apotheosis of Mussolini as a living Party and leave the country. god and his cult was devoted to the main Shortly a# erwards, another Catholic aspect of fascism as a political religion, anti-fascist activist from the opposition, along with acknowledgment of the fascist Igino Giordani, warned the Church not to state’s “sanctity”. It was this “holy” state that succumb to fl attery of the fascist govern- was condemned by Pope Pius XI, who ment, revealing the impossibility to rec- described it as “statolatria Pagana” (a pagan oncile the Catholic religion with the cult of the state). ! is was a constant topic “fascist religion,” as he called the political of tensions and confl ict between the regime concept of fascism. Fascism, with its and the Vatican, despite the signing of the “totalitarian spirit, violence, amorality, Concordat in 1929. lack of legality and oppression” only In Europe in the 1920’s there was no sought to use the Catholic Church as an such living cult leader. Even in Bolshevik instrument to support the realization of Russia, Lenin’s cult did not develop until Fascist political domination. a# er his death. In the 1930’s fascism consistently ! e fi rst person who noticed the simi- strived to transform the Italian monarchy larities in fascism and Bolshevism, com- of that time into a new, totalitarian, fascist bining them by using the term state. ! e Grand Council of Fascism in totalitarianism was Father Luigi Sturzo in 1929 was transformed into the highest 1926. He was one of the fi rst anti-fascists constitutional authority in the country, forced to leave Italy and go into exile by depriving the monarchy automatic suc- Mussolini’s regime. cession to the throne. It abolished the In reality it was not a Bolshevik totali- Chamber of Deputies, the last parliamen- tarian model. A fascist totalitarian model tary state authority and created in its had already existed and successfully spread place the Chamber of Fasci and Corpora- in Europe between the wars, between new tions. dictators: in Bolshevik Russia, on the Ibe- Together with the development of rian Peninsula, in Eastern Europe, to totalitarian methods of the government fi nally erupt in Germany with the Nazi rise by Mussolini and his militia, fascism to power in the early 1930’s..