Between Fascism and Democracy: American Interpretations
of Gender Roles in Postwar Italy
The essay analyzes the interpretations offered by the United States of Italy’s
transition from Fascism to democracy. It focuses in particular on two sources: the
magazine «Life», and the American Association of University Women (AAUW),
and argues that they both played an important role in building postwar US internationalism.
By placing gender at the center of her analysis, the a. attempts to
highlight the analytical importance of the category of gender for the study of international
relations, and in particular of the Cold War. «Life» embraced the idea
that the US should serve as a model for other countries. It conceptualized the
transformation of Italy into a modern democracy as a shift from a form of masculinity
characterized by violence and unruliness, associated with Communism,
to a strong and determined masculinity, symbolized by the American troops.
Furthermore, it interpreted the Marshall Plan as a source of social stability and
economic growth. Thanks to American aid, Italy would be able to embrace modernity,
symbolized by nuclear families with a male breadwinner and a housewife,
living in modern apartments and consuming new forms of leisure activities. On
the other hand, the AAUW argued that Italian women had a crucial role to play in
the rebuilding of their country. Highlighting the importance of women in the
creation of a democratic world, based on peace and on international cooperation,
it organized a series of exchanges between Italy and the US, in order to teach
Italian women the techniques of democracy. Compared to «Life» the AAUW refused
to look at the Italian situation through the lens the Cold War, and conceived
of the immediate postwar perioda s a revolutionary moment, in which women
could play a politically decisive role.