Jason Stanley, Professor of Philosophy at Yale University, discusses his book How Fascism Works. We consider what distinguishes fascism from other forms of anti-liberal politics? What, if anything, is at stake in defining a certain political style as fascist? And finally what do we mean by liberal democracy and why should we value it?
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Jason Stanley, Professor of Philosophy at Yale University, discusses his book How Fascism Works. We consider what distinguishes fascism from other forms of anti-liberal politics? What, if anything, is at stake in defining a certain political style as fascist? And finally what do we mean by liberal democracy and why should we value it?
What drives people to cooperate with evil? Alex Faludy, a journalist based in Budapest, Robert Ericksen, Kurt Mayer Chair of Holocaust Studies Emeritus at Pacific Lutheran University, and David Baer explore this question. They consider the cases of Nazi and communist totalitarianism, and ask whether people in those regimes were unwitting accomplices or conscious collaborators with evil.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the trial and conviction of Adolph Eichmann, one of the primary organizers of the Jewish Holocaust. In her famous account of the trial, Hannah Arendt coined the phrase “banality of evil” to describe how Eichmann, whom she believed to be a mediocre bureaucrat, could mindlessly arrange the unspeakable evil of the Holocaust. Alex takes issue with Arendt, and Robert argues that German support for Hitler did not depend on the totalitarian character of the regime. Meanwhile, David does his best to defend Arendt’s “banality of evil” thesis.
Works referenced in the podcast are:
Alexander Faludy, "The Calculated Evil of Adolf Eichmann," Unherd https://unherd.com/2021/04/the-calculated-evil-of-adolf-eichmann
Robert P. Ericksen, Complicity in the Holocaust: Churches and Universities in Nazi Germany. Cambridge University Press, 2012.
Robert P. Ericksen, Theologians Under Hitler. Yale University Press, 1985.
H. David Baer, The Struggle of Hungarian Lutherans under Communism. Texas A&M University Press, 2006.
BaerTalk
Jason Stanley, Professor of Philosophy at Yale University, discusses his book How Fascism Works. We consider what distinguishes fascism from other forms of anti-liberal politics? What, if anything, is at stake in defining a certain political style as fascist? And finally what do we mean by liberal democracy and why should we value it?
