18/05/2026
📢 CEPS Seminar / Elvio Baccarini (University of Rijeka)
"What Can We Learn about Theories of Justice and Present-Day Populism from Triumph of the Will?"
📅 Wednesday, May 27
⌚️ 11:00 Lisbon time
📍 In Person and Online
CEPS room and Zoom
https://zoom.us/j/95430963757?pwd=Xqy6SFSSl0c24ztaF02Bng8Szo7q8P.1
Abstract:
This talk examines present-day radical right-wing populism and its implications for theories of justice and democratic policymaking. It adopts a dynamic conception of justice, according to which theories and policies are continually revised through engagement with real social problems. Understanding contemporary right-wing populism is therefore important not only for effective political responses, but also for refining liberal egalitarian conceptions of justice themselves.
The talk argues that artworks can contribute to this understanding. In particular, Triumph of the Will reveals important emotional and psychological dynamics underlying mass support for authoritarian movements. While artistic analysis cannot replace empirical or historical research, the film helps illuminate aspects of early totalitarianism that remain relevant to contemporary right-wing populism.
A central claim is that many interpretations of right-wing populism are inadequate because they explain its appeal solely in terms of ignorance, irrationality, or moral deficiency. Such explanations fail to account for the scale of the phenomenon and often alienate its adherents. By contrast, Triumph of the Will shows how Na**sm appealed manipulatively to widely shared needs for safety, belonging, recognition, and empowerment. The film portrays Hi**er as a protective and approachable saviour, while scenes of collective work, celebration, and togetherness create an image of strength, unity, and social meaning.
Clearly, the film is not a reliable representation of reality, but rather a manipulative act of propaganda. Yet precisely because of this, it represents valuable evidence of one of the reasons Na**sm was massively attractive in its early stages and can serve as a valuable interpretive lens for understanding contemporary right-wing populisms. The film also suggests that adherence to authoritarian movements is not simply an “escape from freedom,” but often a search for empowerment and participation in something experienced as meaningful and energizing. Although this empowerment is manipulative and illusory, its emotional force helps explain the attraction of such movements, both historically and today.
The broader lesson is that democratic and egalitarian political movements cannot respond effectively to right-wing populism if they ignore the social and emotional needs that these movements exploit. A defensible conception of justice must therefore protect basic rights and liberties while also addressing needs for well-being, recognition, community, safety, and social belonging. These concerns are already present in the work of thinkers such as John Stuart Mill, John Rawls, and Martha Nussbaum, but they may require stronger emphasis today.
Bio:
Professor of Ethics and Political Philosophy at the University of Rijeka (Croatia). He has published books on public reason and biotechnologies, the political philosophy of J.S. Mill, moral epistemology, practical ethics and philosophy of literature. His articles have appeared in The Journal of Medical Ethics, Grazer Philosophische Studien, International Studies in the Philosophy of Science, Acta Analytica, and other academic journals. He has delivered guest lectures at the University of Oxford, Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona, Freie Universität Berlin, University of Iceland in Reykjavik, University of Amsterdam, University of Bologna, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Milan, and several other institutions. He has taught as a guest professor at Ruhr University Bochum, the State University of Milan and Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Milan. Additionally, he has been an Erasmus guest lecturer at the universities of Eastern Piedmont Vercelli, Hannover, Potsdam, Pavia, Vita-Salute San Raffaele, and Antwerp.
