Fascism vs Socialism
Fascism and Socialism are two schools of thought that show some difference between them when it comes to their principles and concepts. Fascism is an authoritarian, nationalistic political ideology. On the other hand, socialism is an economic system in which the means of production are either owned by the state or owned commonly but cooperatively controlled. This is the main difference between the two terms. The difference that arises at the core idea of fascism and socialism makes them two whole different ideologies. However, if you put that fact aside, you will see that both fascism and socialism are ideologies where strict rules are applied to the members of the society.
What is Fascism?
Fascism is a government led by a dictator who controls every aspect of the society putting the wealthy minority on top. Fascism supports totalitarian single-party state. Fascism is for establishing physical education, indoctrination, and family policy as the various means of mobilization of a nation. It is interesting to note that fascism was founded by Italian national syndicalists during World War I. though fascism does not believe that a class conflict can bring about a change, it believes that a class conflict can harm the integrity of the country. So, they took steps to prevent class conflicts by becoming mediums between classes.
As a matter of fact, fascism supports the use of paramilitary groups or organization to fight the opponents. Fascism is described as anti-communist, anti-democratic, anti-parliamentary, anti-liberal, anti-individualist, and anti-conservative too. It does not support materialism and hierarchy. It is important to know that fascism opposes liberalism to a great extent.
It is interesting to note that the word fascism is derived from the Latin ‘fasces.’ It is a symbol of the authority of the civic magistrate in Rome. In fact, this symbol suggested strength through unity. Thus, fascism aims at strength through unity. Moreover, fascism was discussed at length in the past by historians, political scientists, and other scholars.
Flag of Italian Fascism
What is Socialism?
Socialism is an economic system wherein all the means of production are owned by the public. As the means of production are owned by the public, there is no social division where one class earns a lot while another class suffers with no money. So, socialism believes in production for use. Hence, socialism recommends direct allocation of economic inputs to reach economic goals and human needs. According to critics, the word socialism finds its root in the Latin sociare, which means to combine or to share.
Socialism bases its belief on the class conflict. It is the class conflict that is going to change the society. According to socialism, the general public put a stop to the class conflict by overthrowing the minority who has the power to the means of production. Once that is done, and the means of production becomes the property of everyone, there is no longer a class conflict. The government certainly does not have to act as mediums between classes as there are no classes anymore.
What is the difference between Fascism and Socialism?
• Definitions of Fascism and Socialism:
• Fascism is a government led by a dictator who controls every aspect of the society putting the wealthy minority on top.
• Socialism is a government made for people which takes its actions according to the general public.
• Type of Ideology:
• Fascism is an authoritarian, nationalistic political ideology.
• Socialism is a political ideology where state or public ownership of means of production can be seen.
• Ownership of the Means of Production:
• In fascism, means of production were owned by the minority of the society which was the wealthy few.
• In socialism, means of production were owned by the public or the government.
• Class Conflict:
• Fascism denies that class conflict can bring about a social change.
• Socialism bases its belief on the class conflict. According to socialism, it is the class conflict that is going to change the society.
• Belief in God:
• Fascists believed in God very much.
• Socialists were atheists. Socialists did not believe in God.
• Relationship:
• Fascism is the opposite of Socialism.
• Number of Political Parties:
• Both fascism and socialism had one party political systems.
These are the important differences between fascism and socialism.
Images Courtesy:
- Flag of Italian Fascism via Wikicommons (Public Domain)
- Socialism via Pixabay (Public Domain)
Im glad he includes the following: “socialism is an economic system in which the means of production are either owned by the state or owned commonly but cooperatively controlled.” Since many people forget this.
Would be best to add examples such as Mussolini’s Italy and Nazi Germany (fascism) as opposed to late 20th century Europe (socialism), and how they apply.
This entry needs a conclusion/summary. The last paragraph doesn’t make sense and is, anyways, non sequitur.
Fascism is pretty much a right-wing ideology. It is where America is heading thanks to 30+ years of unfettered capitalism and trickle-down economic (Reaganomics). “When fascism comes to America, it will come wrapped in the flag and waving a cross,” – Sinclair Lewis
Right and Left are opposites. Is North Korea “Right-wing?”
The Far Right of the gov’t spectrum is Anarchy. The Far Left is complete Totalitarianism.
You really want us to believe that Kim Jong-Un is left wing? Or Putin for that matter? You probable think the Hitler was left wing, right?
Hitler was left wing and got his way of governing from The Democratic Socialist Party .100 million have died under the belief socialism is good, It destroys everyone but the top 1%. like the LBGT left wing snow flake safe space BLM intolerant groups that want some one dead because they cant stand anyone who does not agree. They don’t want equal rights they want force speech and death to all who dare to say your nuts. They grab their black victims and shout slavery to anyone including blacks that disagree, run them out of places, spit on people destroy property all the time hiding their faces and calling all whites racist. The very people who cry equal rights refuse to give equal rights. The children of the KKK using slavery to be slave masters. Supporting socialist and wanting the end of everyone, just remember when they wipe out Christians they will wipe out blacks, then Asian and in the end you have broke starving gender confused made men. They will demand free stuff at the backs of their new slaves preaching how wrong slavery is yet marching to be the new Masters.
Just the opposite is true. America is heading toward communism. There is no “unfettered capitalism” in America. It there were, the country wouldn’t be $17 trillion in debt and 100 million people in America wouldn’t be out of work. Socialism has failed wherever it has been tried.
“Thirty years of unfettered capitalism?”
How about “175 years of unfettered capitalism leading to the greatest economic expansion and unparalleled prosperity in world history, followed by gradual FETTERING of capitalism as government gradually came to control – unconstitutionally – more and more of the former private sector leading to economic stagnation?”
There, fixed. Go back to school and tell your professor he’s a fucking ignoramous.
Mussolini was a fascist. Hitler was a committed to socialism. Both seem to end up at the same destination, even though they start off in opposite directions
The Nazis were socialists. The Communists certainly fit the definition of fascism. So the distinctions that are being made here are bogus. They simply don’t work. Both systems are totalitarian. If individual rights, including property rights, are usurped by a government, does it really matter if it is fascist or socialist? The end result is the same.
the theory of communism is different than those that have claimed to have achieved the theory. the basic theory of communism is that the poverty stricken destroy everyone’s property, then everyone is poverty stricken and they come together to survive without classes, eliminating class division. some native american tribes didn’t believe in ownership, and thus the tribe lead by an elder decided distribution of things. this was the closest there has been to communism, early protestant settlement came close as well as the village council technically owned everything and had absolute authority. leftists tend not to acknowledge this as these are considered the basis for right wing ideology, and they were primitive systems that were very divided between those with power and those without (the division wasn’t due to money, but popularity). the nomadic native americans that followed this path retained liberty due to the ease of a group leaving if they didn’t like being in the tribe to form their own tribe, and the ease of returning if they changed their minds. the celts had a society that had such freedoms, both had issues with their people breaking off and raiding other people then returning to the safety of the group bring wealth with them. socialism is about the group that works owns what they work with, sharing in the profit together. state sponsored socialism tends to be state owned enterprises in which the money returns to the state and then is given out by the state to the people. fascism is an atheist nationalist ideal that has the state control everything, and has total authority. as fascist government controls everything they can dictate what gets paid to the workers and thus forcing socialistic ideals on an enterprise. fascism doesn’t have to technically own anything, they just make all decisions, which is how mussolini gained support of the capitalists during his rise to power. the government can still have elections, nazi germany suspended proper voting during the war (which conveniently coincided with their consolidation of power) and had plans for a proper election in 1947 (who knows if this would have happened if the nazis had won the war). the point is that communism is very specific and has never (probably can’t) been achieved, fascism is a bit broader, socialism is incredibly broad. liberal socialism is what europe today follows, the state is responsible for the citizen’s health, education, sustenance, and freedom. the national socialist nazi platform advocated the state is responsible for the citizen’s health, education, work, and morals. anyone can see there is clear overlap between the two, mussolini’s fascism had less in common with today’s popular version of socialism, but was still fascist, and still advocated that the workers shared in the decisions of the enterprise in which they worked (as allowed by the state). less obvious forms of socialism would be public roads or schools, which most of the world has, fascism is too specific for such bite sized things to be fascist, but if it was broader, then having a national army would be a bite sized example of fascism, which most of the world has. fascism is on a level with marxism or maoism, socialism is on the level with nationalism and liberalism. the first group is too specific of political ideology to be taken in bite sized chunks and retain its identity, while the second grouping is broad and allows mixing to form new ideologies. in other words national socialism may be fascist, or it might not be depending on how you mix it, and fascist marxism is a bogus concept. communism is on the level with utopia or group mind, a concept that will most likely always be just a concept. something can be communistic, just like something can be utopian or group minded, in other words it can have similarities to the concept, without achieving the concept, though these are relativistic terms and only applies so long as it is compared to things that are less like the concepts than the thing you are calling communistic or utopian. once you start comparing two things with equal similarities to the concept the term no longer holds meaning.
Best essay on these concepts I’ve read in a very long time. Read the above carefully several times. All of these concepts have one thing in common: CONTROL of every aspect of people’s lives. Only CAPITALISM, not discussed above DOES NOT seek to control people’s lives. The goal of CAPITALISM is to give people the opportunity to control their own lives.
John Eric Partanen, PhD
At last a comment with a brain attached
Socialism is NOT an economic system. The opposite of communism is capitalism. Take an economic class.
Language evolves. Terms change in terms of common usage. Technology many times forces a new definition of terms. The elections in the USA in Nov. 2016 demonstrates this. The Democrats on their high moral horse were snorting and charging ahead to change society into their vision of Utopia. Of course they choose to make a Godless society. The people revolted and spurned the champion of their choosing, Hillary. What the people spurned was a repudiation of the things that the Democrats believe in. I see little differences in Fascism versus Socialism. From the definition proffered above, the Fascists are a right-wjng minority controlling the wealth of the nation. The Socialist (or the Progressives as the Democrats like to call themselves since they are gutless to admit what they really are) is a group of minority individuals controlling the wealth of the nation “for the good of all”. The Communist using a slightly different terms for the basis of their beliefs can be a Fascist or a Socialist state. All of these have failed and all appear the same to the discerning eye. Their supposed differences in ideology as a basis for their actions result in exactly the same outcomes. What difference did their ideologies make?
They all resulted in dictators and tyrants lording it over the people and squashing individual rights in the pursuit of a greater conscious awareness of what is best for people. The stupid, ignorant masses will just have to be beaten, dragged in kicking to accept their concept of Godhood.
Take the Democrats in America. They could not win elections on the basis of their arguments and positions. So they had to get the ill-informed, the naïve ones to vote for them so they lowered the voting age to eighteen. That tactic failed so now in high-sounding moral outrage they need to get a new crop of gullible voters to support them. Ergo, you stupid, dumb-ass Republicans and right-wingers you are just morally bankrupt to the higher understanding of the human intellect. Or else you would not resist our move to have open borders and let anyone come to this country unfettered and without any need for proper petitioning to enter the country legal. Then how dare you prevent these people from voting when they get here so they can vote for us. This is the Democrat mindset. Truth is that many immigrants are more American than native born ones in their appreciation of the rights and freedoms here. Many (probably many more) come from poor situations and are glad for a free hand out from the government since the American government will give them better handouts than they got at home. Even many of the blacks are now awaking to the realization that the white, socialist, progressive Democrats have instituted policies solely for the purpose of keeping the black person in their place and handing out a few trinkets so that the blacks will continue to vote for them and keep them in power,
All of these have a common basis which is to deny the noble human being of his God-given rights and freedoms and responsibility. Each man is responsible for his own well-fare and that of his family. He is responsible for the good and the bad decisions that he makes. It is not the responsibility of the state.
Remove the descriptive terms for Fascism, Socialism, Communism. Look at the actions they took to establish themselves in positions of power. Look at their actions as they consolidated their power. Look at their actions after they have obtained power. Of course there are a few exceptions for a short period of time. But all of them look exactly the same based on their actions. What difference does it make what some ideological demagogue determines different about their motivations. The results are the same, suppression of the human spirit, loss of freedom, release from individual responsibility for the common good, suppression of thoughts and ideas espoused by the current few in control especially when those thoughts are contrary to their beliefs.
It is only when men are truly free to choose are they free indeed and when they are ruled by a MINIMUM of government control. No human government has ever been established that truly looked out for the good of its people. The founding of the U.S. is the closest that man has come. Why was it successful? Their revolution was based on their faith in God through the Lord Jesus Christ. The rights they died for were what they believed man was endowed with from God (not from man). America has lost it way and is going down the road of countless number of nations before it. Any government form based on ideas of man without including God is doomed to failure. History has proven that over and over again.
I came to this page because I was looking for the technical description of Fascism and Socialism as I see no difference in the outcomes of both which ends up being brutal suppression of the people by a misguided few who hold power.
And He said, do not be amazed that they hate you for they hated Me first.
Hey everyone, Trump won only because of Obama. Trump will win or lose the next election only if the democrats go to the extreme left and offer everything to all. If the left wins the election, 1. all illegals will be able to vote cementing the Dems victories forever, 2. the nation will go bankrupt quickly, 3. China will “control”, 4. America is done. This country has lost its moderate and civil people. The left Democrats will destroy all just for the temporary power they desire. The definitions of Socialist, fascists or communist will have no meaning when all is lost. Looking at history, I do feel that we are in the same situation as in1860 as a nation. But there is no Abe Lincoln in the background. P.S. Abe Lincoln was called a country bumkin during the1860s to 1865 by the democratic northern newspapers.
Both fascism and socialism are nearly identical. They are BOTH totalitarian systems in which the government owns the means of production, where there is generally only one political ruling class. If in a fascist dictatorship “a small wealthy group” is in power, who just happen to own industry… is no different than any other central government that owns production.
Socialism can only exist through the threat of force and coercion. Socialism has nothing do with a free society and destroys human individualism, innovation and creativity.
There will never be a successful totalitarian system with just “one class”. That is ridiculous.
Relationship:
Fascism and Socialism are nearly identical.
There is no “Left” or “Right”, there is only Tyranny or Freedom, respectively.
Mussolini was opposed to classical liberalism, which is another way of saying conservatism, or libertarianism. Mussolini was NOT opposed to social liberalism AT ALL. Learn the difference what classical liberalism is for crying out loud. I see this mistake repeated over and over by the Left. Mussolini was a collectivist, while he was kicked out of Italy’s socialist party he was every bit a Leftist. As a megalomaniac, his fascism was merely another form of socialistic experiment that was his own.
Socialism is about Citizen collective control possibly via governing body aka a vote (democratic process) off allembers of society. Majority rule 51%:49% or 90%:10%.
Fascism is a single ruler and or a board of rulers (see most major corporations) these few make the descisions that effect every one else lives and those not in that select group have no choice but to accept what the rulers do. Minority rule: 1 or a few decide how things go and millions must follow.
Niether is Anti-capitalism both believe in regulated markets, one regulate by the people the other regulated by the rulers.
Nazism is a Fascist variant that adopted some aspects of socialism (popular in Germany at the time) but combined it with anti-thetical ideas such as racial purity and a “ruling class”. Also Nazism specifically attacks Socialist/socialism (drove out and imprisoned the socialist in germany) as a threat to nationalist unity because the philosoohy disregards any concept (nationalism/ethnic/religious/cultural) that would cause division in unification of the working class against the owning class.
A philosophy/ideology sharing aspect does not make them the same thing.
Some forms of Satanism speak about the god from Abrahamic mythology but that does not make them one of the Abrahamic philosophies/belief systems.
Fox News calls some Democratic candidates as Socialists and omit the party name Democrat. But If you look up Fascist , the definition is so close to the way President Trump is running the country, scares more thinking people. Anti-immigrant, UltraNationalism, the wealthy control the government not the people, POTUS wants unchecked control of all government functions with no oversight. and the freedom of the press doesn’t exist
As for Trump; he is not anti-immigrant he is against open borders; which would allow any and all people into the nation. (not such a big problem since covid-19) but is a bad idea economically to inflate the amount of potential workers.
UltraNationalism, Yes, thank you please leader of the country make the people of this country your priority. Instead of trying to take care of everyone else. His job should to that of the nation under his charge.
The wealthy have been in seats of power since the beginning of the country. I’m unclear how he is at fault for the fervor of other wealthy very driven people that have been in control before he was even in politics.(some for many decades ex: Joe Biden who is both very rich and a politician since the 70’s)
The main reason I did not vote for him in 2016 is his track record with his wives. He has cheated on them and been divorced twice before. I don’t find this to be particularly stable, and was not willing to bet head lead a country very well. (I didn’t vote for Hillary because she has similar family issues as well as having a poor track record as sectary of state) That being said Trump has done fairly well in my opinion, and if it wasn’t for covid-19 causing so many hang ups, the major new networks and social media websites seemingly working for the DNC, he would have been able to do an even better job.