Ernest Hemingway on American Fascism
Because I took no books with me on what I thought would be a three-week trip to Paris and Barcelona, I’ve been passing the time by reading old books online. Over the past day I read Ernest Hemingway’s “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” his novel set in the Spanish Civil War. His protagonist, Robert Jordan, works for the Spanish Republic, which is bolstered by foreigners like the Abraham Lincoln brigade from America and Soviet communists, against the Nationalists, backed by fascist Italy and Germany.
Jordan and a small band of guerrilla fighters are operating behind enemy lines. While waiting for the day of their mission, Jordan is telling the Spaniards of his life back home in Montana. There follows this exchange (emphases mine).
“In your country there are mountains? With that name surely there are mountains,”
Primitivo asked politely to make conversation.
“Many mountains and very high.”
“And are there good pastures?”
“Excellent; high pasture in the summer in forests controlled by the government. Then in the fall the cattle are brought down to the lower ranges.”
“Is the land there owned by the peasants?”
“Most land is owned by those who farm it. Originally the land was owned by the state and by living on it and declaring the intent~on of improving it, a man could obtain a title to a hundred and fifty hectares.”
“Tell me how this is done,” Agustín asked. “That is an agrarian reform which means something.”
Robert Jordan explained the process of homesteading. He had never thought of it before as an agrarian reform.
“That is magnificent,” Primitivo said. “Then you have a communism in your country?”
“No. That is done under the Republic.”
“For me,” Agustín said, “everything can be done under the Republic. I see no need for other form of government.”
“Do you have no big proprietors?” Andrés asked.
“Many.”
“Then there must be abuses.”
“Certainly. There are many abuses.”
“But you will do away with them?”
“We try to more and more. But there are many abuses still.”
“But there are not great estates that must be broken up?”
“Yes. But there are those who believe that taxes will break them up.”
“How?”
Robert Jordan, wiping out the stew bowl with bread, explained how the income tax and inheritance tax worked. “But the big estates remain. Also there are taxes on the land,” he said.
“But surely the big proprietors and the rich will make a revolution against such taxes. Such taxes appear to me to be revolutionary. They will revolt against the government when they see that they are threatened, exactly as the fascists have done here,” Primitivo said.
“It is possible.”
“Then you will have to fight in your country as we fight here.”
“Yes, we will have to fight.”
“But are there not many fascists in your country?”
“There are many who do not know they are fascists but will find it out when the time comes.”
“But you cannot destroy them until they rebel?”
“No,” Robert Jordan said. “We cannot destroy them. But we can educate the people so that they will fear fascism and recognize it as it appears and combat it.”
Hemingway wrote that in 1939 and 1940, before the U.S. entered the Second World War. Perhaps he was speaking of the America First Committee and the white supremacists of his day. But his words certainly seem prescient given the past 40 years of American history. They took over the government by democratic means at first, but have held onto it for the past 20 years by anti-democratic methods.
And, as Hemingway predicted, many do know not know they are fascists. Pehaps they will realize it if war comes.
Thanks for posting that. I read it so long ago the idea of being wary of fascist in America seemed funny to me
” They took over the government by democratic means at first, but have held onto it for the past 20 years by anti-democratic methods.”
Sad truth, minority rule has displaced democracy in more then a few states. I’m a bit older then many and remember when anti Fascist sentiment was strong in America, today not so much. Those who forget the past……..
Al, Lots of digital resources at Delaware public libraries: https://lib.de.us/emedia/
http://answers.delawarelibraries.org/ <– if you need help with your card # or PIN. If you don't have a physical card you can get an online-only card once they've finished upgrading that program.
Thanks for the info, Jill, much appreciated.
I’ve still gots lots of public-domain classics to get through for now — there are 70,000 volumes at gutenberg.org — but I have no idea when I’ll be able to get back home so I might want to read something more up-to-date at some point.
Right, forgot to mention Gutenberg, thanks.
This too: https://archive.org/index.php, although I haven’t used it.