Heroic Pasts and Anticipated Futures: A Comparative Analysis of the Conceptions of History of the Nordic Resistance Movement and Generation Identity

Abstract

This article discusses the relationship between right-wing radicalism, right-wing extremism and fascism by comparing what can be seen as two contemporary expressions of the extra-parliamentary far right: the neo-Nazi Nordic Resistance Movement and the Europe-wide Generation Identity. By analysing the temporal regimes and conceptions of history that underlie these two movements, the article highlights how, although they belong to different analytical categories (fascism/right-wing extremism and right-wing radicalism respectively), both ideologies express a vision of the need for a radical renewal of the status quo that shares some fundamental assumptions about the nature of history. Yet, they convey that historical vision in contrasting terms and mobilize different points of reference.