Mussolini: A Biography
Condition: SECONDHAND
This is a secondhand book. The jacket image is a photograph of the exact copy we have in stock. This image shows the condition of this book. Further condition remarks are below.
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: Worn/faded, no tears
Pages: Good
Markings: No markings
A landmark work of political biography, Denis Mack Smith's Mussolini: A Biography chronicles the rise and fall of Benito Mussolini, the founder of Italian Fascism and one of the twentieth century's most destructive dictators. Drawing on a wealth of primary sources, Smith presents a penetrating and unflinching portrait of a man driven by vanity, opportunism, and an insatiable hunger for power, arguing that Mussolini was less a principled ideologue than a consummate manipulator of public opinion and political circumstance. Written with scholarly rigor yet accessible prose, the biography details the mechanisms of Fascist rule in Italy — the propaganda, the violence, the cult of personality — and illustrates how a nation can be seduced by authoritarian spectacle. Smith uncovers the profound contradictions at the heart of Mussolini's character, revealing a leader whose grandiose imperial ambitions were consistently undermined by his own incompetence and self-deception. This authoritative and deeply researched account remains an essential text for anyone seeking to understand the origins and nature of European Fascism.
Author: Denis Mack Smith
Format: Hardback
Genre: Biography
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: Worn/faded, no tears
Pages: Good
Markings: No markings
A landmark work of political biography, Denis Mack Smith's Mussolini: A Biography chronicles the rise and fall of Benito Mussolini, the founder of Italian Fascism and one of the twentieth century's most destructive dictators. Drawing on a wealth of primary sources, Smith presents a penetrating and unflinching portrait of a man driven by vanity, opportunism, and an insatiable hunger for power, arguing that Mussolini was less a principled ideologue than a consummate manipulator of public opinion and political circumstance. Written with scholarly rigor yet accessible prose, the biography details the mechanisms of Fascist rule in Italy — the propaganda, the violence, the cult of personality — and illustrates how a nation can be seduced by authoritarian spectacle. Smith uncovers the profound contradictions at the heart of Mussolini's character, revealing a leader whose grandiose imperial ambitions were consistently undermined by his own incompetence and self-deception. This authoritative and deeply researched account remains an essential text for anyone seeking to understand the origins and nature of European Fascism.