“Fascism,” the Relevant Past, and Monologues in the Face of Others

Abstract

From a political point of view, the key purpose of any reference to the past is not so much to substantiate concrete wording as to form collective identities and/or provide moral justification for certain political decisions. Therefore, one cannot but agree with Marlene Laruelle that discussions, largely virtual, about World War II and the role of the USSR in it, which flare up from time to time in the European press, are closely related to the search for an answer to a more pressing question: Can modern Russia be considered part (albeit special) of some common European space? Her article, filled with propositions and observations some would gladly subscribe to, still gives food for thought due to its focus on academic debate with those who consider Russia fascist or seek analogies between Putin’s Russia and Hitler’s Germany.