In December 2021, I was supposed to present a paper digitally at the 2021 International Association for Comparative Fascist Studies (ComFaS) conference in Vienna. Unfortunately, I was unable to do so due to technical problems, so I posted it online for public consumption.
In their search for symbols that might be useful for recruiting purposes or for motivating or justifying action, twenty-first century far right actors have frequently turned to antiquity for source material. One story they have seized upon is the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BCE. An army of outside invaders, a small band of self-sacrificing heroes, and a traitorous villain are all useful elements for xenophobic activists intent on inspiring fear and violence through an allegory they can present as indicative of an eternal struggle between European men and the rest of the world.
You can read the full essay here.