La destra all'italiana

(The Right in an Italian Style)

Abstract

The essay starts by calling attention to the historical reasons that have made the categories of “the right” and “the left” useful tools within the political debate as well as in the political theory and historiography considerations of all times and places. The essay continues by focusing on the original interpretation of the notion of “the right” that is offered by the Italian case. Starting from its definition in the liberal period and through its new formulation occurring during Mussolini’s years, we have arrived at the notion of “the right” that dominates the period of the Italian Republic. The essay concludes by acknowledging the strain that the categories of “right” and “left” have undergone in the age of globalization and the realignment that this has forced on the political actors.