Nicos Poulantzas and the political theory of fascism

50 years later

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to realize a critical assessment of the theses exposed by Nicos Poulantzas in the work Fascism and Dictatorship. In general, the text proposes to discuss the scope and limits of this work as a political theory of fascism, which implies taking into consideration the following aspects: a) the relationship between political theory and history and its contribution to the elaboration of a political periodization fascism; and b) the characterization of fascism as a form of specific regime for the “capitalist state of exception”, or as we prefer to define: fascism as a particular dictatorial political regime inscribed in the historical development of the form of dictatorial capitalist state.