Kindle Price: $27.99

Save $9.01 (24%)

Promotions apply when you purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Some promotions may be combined; others are not eligible to be combined with other offers. For details, please see the Terms & Conditions associated with these promotions.

Read with our free app
You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions

Buy for others

Give as a gift or purchase for a team or group.
Learn more

Buying and sending eBooks to others

  1. Select quantity
  2. Buy and send eBooks
  3. Recipients can read on any device

These ebooks can only be redeemed by recipients in the US. Redemption links and eBooks cannot be resold.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Amazon book clubs early access
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Amazon book clubs early access

Join or create book clubs

Choose books together

Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Explore Amazon Book Clubs

Follow the author

Katy Hull
Follow
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

The Machine Has a Soul: American Sympathy with Italian Fascism (America in the World Book 39) Kindle Edition

by Katy Hull (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 2 ratings
See all formats and editions

A historical look at the American fascination with Italian fascism during the interwar period

In the interwar years, the United States grappled with economic volatility, and Americans expressed anxieties about a decline in moral values, the erosion of families and communities, and the decay of democracy. These issues prompted a profound ambivalence toward modernity, leading some individuals to turn to Italian fascism as a possible solution for the problems facing the country. The Machine Has a Soul delves into why Americans of all stripes sympathized with Italian fascism, and shows that fascism’s appeal rested in the image of Mussolini’s regime as “the machine which will run and has a soul”—a seemingly efficient and technologically advanced system that upheld tradition, religion, and family.

Katy Hull focuses on four prominent American sympathizers: Richard Washburn Child, a conservative diplomat and Republican operative; Anne O’Hare McCormick, a distinguished New York Times journalist; Generoso Pope, an Italian-American publisher and Democratic political broker; and Herbert Wallace Schneider, a Columbia University professor of moral philosophy. In fascism’s violent squads they saw youthful glamour and impeccable manners, in the megalomaniacal Mussolini they perceived someone both current and old-fashioned, and in the corporate state they witnessed a politics that could revive addled minds. They argued that with the right course of action, the United States could use fascism to take the best from modernity while withstanding its harmful effects.

Investigating the motivations of American fascist sympathizers, The Machine Has a Soul offers provocative lessons about authoritarianism’s appeal during times of intense cultural, social, and economic strain.

Previous page
  1. Part of series
    America in the World
  2. Print length
    261 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publisher
    Princeton University Press
  6. Publication date
    January 12, 2021
  7. File size
    17202 KB
  8. Page Flip
    Enabled
  9. Word Wise
    Enabled
  10. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  11. See all details
Next page
Due to its large file size, this book may take longer to download
Next 3 for you in this series See full series
Total Price: $83.87
By clicking on the above button, you agree to Amazon's Kindle Store Terms of Use

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This well-written account is exhaustively researched." ― Choice Reviews

Review

"Beautifully conceived and elegantly written, The Machine Has a Soul takes a deep dive into interwar America’s quest for political regeneration. Fascism’s enticing proposal to trade individual freedom for social justice and inclusion took root in a country that faced disillusionment, alienation, and creeping economic depression. Hull’s landmark book resonates today as a powerful reminder of the importance of cultivating strong democratic antibodies, especially in times of crisis."―Dario Fazzi, Roosevelt Institute for American Studies



"Briskly written and meticulously researched, The Machine Has a Soul makes an important contribution to American intellectual history during the interwar period, and to the study of relations between Italy and the United States."―John L. Harper, author of The Cold War

"In this excellent book, Hull, an astute reader of texts and an outstanding writer, has consulted an enormous array of primary sources. Her first-rate work reveals much about American culture and US attitudes toward fascism."―Bruce Kuklick, author of A Political History of the USA

"Combining profound scholarship with an accessible and appealing style, this book is a pleasure to read, despite its forbidding subject. Hull shows how fascist sympathies enabled her four protagonists to get ahead in their careers in the United States in the 1930s, and the excuses they made for Mussolini's excesses, before eventually recognizing his abnegation of American values and interests. A finely observed, forthright analysis of the fallacies of appeasement in the United States."―Michael Leigh, Johns Hopkins University

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08D715877
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Princeton University Press (January 12, 2021)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 12, 2021
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 17202 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 261 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 2 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Katy Hull

Katy Hull

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Katy Hull teaches American History at the University of Amsterdam. She currently lives in Vienna, Austria with her spouse and children. This is her first book.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
2 global ratings

Top review from the United States

Tom Diaz
4.0 out of 5 stars Proof it can happen here
Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2024
Verified Purchase
The unfortunate history of the American love affair with Benito Mussolini, told largely through the eyes of several American elite thought leaders. I venture to say most 21st century Americans are ignorant of this frightening precedent.
Helpful
 Report
Report an issue

Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Report
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Report
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?
Report