Paper short abstract:

I would like to explore the birth of a "totalitarian folklore" during fascist Italy. In the early 1930's, folklore was integrated within the institution of fascism. This caused a decisive change in the paradigm of folklore studies as fascist ideology influenced folklorist's works.

Paper long abstract:

Italian fascism held an interest for folklore from the beginning of its coming into power as the Italian government. The educational reform of 1923, created by the philosopher Giovanni Gentile, contributed to diffusing the interest for folklore amongst the younger generations. The reform included teaching folklore and regional culture to children in elementary school. The purpose of this new school discipline was to promote and improve the sentiment for the nation and, while doing so, to strengthen national consciousness.

In general, during the 1920's the interest for folklore was very developed. Folklorist Raffaele Corso founded the review Il Folklore italiano and in 1929 organized the first Congress of Popular Traditions in Florence. In this period, fascist ideology began having a certain degree of influence on folklore studies but these were mainly shaped by a nationalist ideology, just like during the Risorgimento phase.

The development of a "fascist folklore" truly takes place after Mussolini's totalitarianism turn as folklore occupies a more important role in the regime's propaganda policies. In regards to folklore studies, effects can be witnessed after the second Congress of Popular Tradition in 1931, when all of the folklore initiatives are included in the OND and in the politics of the regime's propaganda. This determined a conversion in folklore studies as folklorists had to harmonize their studies with the regime's ideology. This union caused a decisive change in the paradigm of folklore and in its theoretical approaches.