In his book, Liberalism and the Challenge of Fascism, Schapiro set out to discuss the changes in both England and France.
Schapiro contrasted the smooth evolution of liberalism in England to the violent swings back and forth between reaction and liberal forces in France.
This historical violent dialectic in France, in Schapiro's argument, was what created the basic ideas of Nazism.
Schapiro's Definition of Fascism One thinker whose views Schapiro felt were proto-fascist was French anarchist Pierre Joseph Proudhon (1809-1865).
[1] This interpretation of Proudhon's philosophy was strongly challenged by Italian activist and author Nicola Chiaromonte, however.