Abstract
In contrast to ancient despotism, modern dictatorships have tended to rely on the involvement of the masses to a surprising extent (Lim 2005). One line of comparative inquiry into the functioning of Fascism and Communism stresses the aspect of coercion by investigating the records of the secret police, their repressive policies, victimization of opponents and concentration camp system. Another, more recent direction of research emphasizes instead the “soft stabilizers” of dictatorial regimes such as ideological propaganda, public rituals or material incentives that generated voluntary compliance. For their self-perception as well as international reputation dictatorships required the acclamation and participation of large numbers of citizens for their political legitimation and actual functioning. Beyond personal charisma or messianic faith, it was generally a shared ideological project that cemented the bond between leaders and followers.
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Jarausch, K. (2016). Introduction: Mass Dictatorship as Modernizing Project: Some Preliminary Reflections. In: Corner, P., Lim, JH. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Mass Dictatorship. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-43763-1_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-43763-1_1
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