Tag Archives: Fascism

Hughes’s Message More Urgent Than Ever

By Robin Bates | Published: July 3, 2023

Langston Hughes’s call for us to return to the vision expressed in the “Declaration of Independence” is more timely than ever.

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Authoritarians Long to Act with Impunity

By Robin Bates | Published: June 13, 2023

Authoritarians long to act with impunity. H.G. Wells captures this fantasy in “The Invisible Man.”

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Baldwin, Cop Sadism, and MAGA

By Robin Bates | Published: May 18, 2023

In “If Beale Street Could Talk,” Baldwin captures cop sadism of the sort we also seen in Trump supporters.

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Odysseus’s Authoritarian Power Play

By Robin Bates | Published: February 7, 2023

Homer shows the dynamics of authoritarianism at work in an “Iliad” incident where Odysseus disciplines a critic of the Greek mission.

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Books Banned Because They’re Powerful

By Robin Bates | Published: January 19, 2023

Book banning is on the rise in the U.S., including recently in Virginia. Brecht’s “Burning of the Books” is always powerful.

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Fiction as Authoritarian Weapon

By Robin Bates | Published: December 21, 2022

In “Seduced by Story,” Peter Brooks warns of the dangers of narrative. Borges agrees in “Tlon Uqbar.”

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Ukraine Must Unite Athena with Poseidon

By Robin Bates | Published: September 20, 2022

The ancient myth about Athena and Poseidon, historian Snyder argues, captures what Ukraine needs today in its battle with Russia.

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Trump Dreamed a Voldemort Moment

By Robin Bates | Published: June 30, 2022

It’s now clear that Trump, on Jan. 6, 2021, dreamed of leading his followers into the Capitol. Think of Voldemort entering Hogwarts.

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All Authoritarians Are Like Richard III

By Robin Bates | Published: May 18, 2022

Shakespeare gives us a brilliant depiction of the authoritarian mindset in “Richard III.” Think Trump and Putin.

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