JINS 380 - Roads to Dictatorship-Germany

This JINS course explores the evolution of dictatorship in German culture by tracing the literary, artistic and societal influences that documented and often contributed to a nationalistic mentality receptive to absolute rule and social conformity. During the first half of the course, students examine (1) the Holy Roman Empire of Karl the Great (Charlemagne) and Frankish nation building- unjust seizure, compulsory conversion and educational reform as control mechanisms, and (2) the German empire of Friedrich Barbarossa and the rise of knightly- and crusading culture as an imperial ideology. During the second half, the despotic regimes of Friedrick the Great, Wilhelm II (the Second Reich), and Adolf Hitler (the Third Reich) reveal similar literary and social phenomena - the reverence for authority, conformity, all things military, and finally, an acceptance and cultivation of xenophobia.

Prerequisite: Junior status.
Credits: 3 hours
NOTE: This course fulfills the Junior Interdisciplinary Writing-Enhanced Seminar Interconnecting Perspective of the Liberal Studies Program.
NOTE: This course counts toward the 63-hour Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) graduation requirement.
NOTE: This course is writing-enhanced.