Fascist Italy vs. Fascist Germany vs. Communist Russia

Fascism in Germany and Italy and communism in Russia during the early 20th century all emerged generally in the same time period, where many countries struggled to find social, political, and economic stability. These two different government structures acted as restorers for these nations during this time, naturally provoking radical changes in society with three main tactics: compelling propaganda, charismatic centralized power, and focused citizen equality.

The German, Italian, and Russian all had many new ideas to sell to their respective countries that altered many of the current trends in society at the time. There main way of promoting these ideas was propaganda - and lots of it. Posters were seen all around Berlin, as we saw in "Cabaret." Propagandist cartoons were implemented in children's school books to feed the young generation with ideas of fascism. Communist propaganda posters depicted Lenin as the savior of Russia and the leader for positive change. All three of these regimes required mass amounts of positive publicity to cement their ideas into society. Propaganda acted as a way to minimize skepticism.

Confidence played a key role in the success of nations during the 1930s. In other words, citizens needed to believe in their governments and that they were in control. Fascism and Communism both fed this need by having strong, charismatic leaders with superb oratory and aggressive ambitions. Germany suffered great economic losses after WWI, but Hitler's speeches about reform and his image as a dominant world leader provoked an immense sense of pride within Germany, bringing them out of turmoil. Mussolini's idea of fascism was strongly supported by his confident expansionist ideas, adding to his campaign as a whole. Lenin led his progressive communist movement by promising the Russian population with happiness and success, adding to his ambitious persona. Propaganda helped these leaders with this image, but they also had to personally implement their strong charisma into their speeches to enhance their political ideas.

Lastly, all three regimes emphasize the importance of total equality among citizens. However, fascism's approach to this goal differed from communism. Communism's main vibe is total equality between classes (ideally one unified class of workers). Equality was the goal communism. Fascism, on the other hand, enforced widespread equality among citizens by centralizing their governmental power, leaving the population mainly as low-class workers. Therefore, regardless of intention, fascism and communism craft the same kind of society: a suppressed and forced working class with no say in governmental decisions.