Berlusconism and Italy: A Historical Interpretation

by G. Orsina

Overview

From the outset, Silvio Berlusconi's career was expected to be short, and he has been considered finished several times, only to have reemerged victorious. This fascinating political and historical study shows that Berlusconi's success and resilience have lain in his ability to provide answers to longstanding questions in Italian history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781137438669
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan US
Publication date:	09/04/2014
Series:	Italian and Italian American Studies
Edition description:	2014
Pages:	199
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Giovanni Orsina is Associate Professor in Contemporary History and Deputy Director of the School of Government, Luiss-Guido Carli University, Rome, Italy.

Table of Contents

1. The "Italian Question" 2. The Antifascist Republic 3. Berlusconism 4. The Berlusconian Elector 5. The Evolution of Berlusconism 6. Epilogue: The Fly in the Bottle

Editorial Reviews

"By placing 'Berlusconism' into a fully historical context, Giovanni Orsina cuts through the stereotypes. He has exposed the Berlusconi phenomenon's roots and has given us a fresh understanding of an important trend that Italian and international observers have frequently treated in a superficial manner. Orsina's insightful and impeccably documented book leads us to conclude that—far from being an inexplicable development led by a quixotic businessman operating in a unbalanced country—there are rational explanations for Berlusconi's rise that other countries ignore at their own risk." - Spencer M. Di Scala, University of Massachusetts Boston, USA

"How Silvio Berlusconi came to corral an electoral power-base and dominate his country's politics for so long is a fascinating story. And in this book Giovanni Orsina explains how he did it. By setting the Berlusconi phenomenon in the broad sweep of the modern Italian political history the book manages to de-mystify the subject. A certain logic emerges. Foreigners in particular often struggle to understand the rise of Silvio Berlusconi, but Professor Orsina has provided them here with a comprehensive explanation." - Alan Johnston, correspondent with BBC Rome

"Giovanni Orsina has written the first serious book on 'Berlusconism' as a political movement whose nature and success can be explained by delving in the long story of our country. . . . A book that, for the quality of its writing, the obvious seriousness and rootedness of many of its arguments … should find many readers." - Michele Salvati, Il Corriere della Sera

From the Publisher