September 29-October 1

For this week, please consider one of the two possible prompts.
Film: Consider the categories/genres Nazi cinema, Western, Trenker film. How would using the various categories change the interpretation of the film The Emperor of California? Which details would you highlight to make your case that the film belonged to this category?
Reading: Focus on the Koepnick article Unsettling America: German Westerns and Modernity (on OAK). What is Koepnick's argument? Is it convincing? What do you agree or disagree with?

September 22-24: Alice Hamilton, Hitlerjunge Quex, and Kuhle Wampe

For this week's post, consider the Alice Hamilton reading (on OAK between weeks 2 and 3 in the "Course Readings" folder) in relation to Hitlerjunge Quex and Kuhle Wampe. Use either the films or the reading as your focus.

Post September 15-17

For this week, please feel free to raise points or questions beyond the prompts.

For Films: How is gender represented in Hitlerjunge Quex? Which concepts of femininity and masculinity are offered by the Communists? By the National Socialists?

For Readings: Identify significant issues in the Goebbels reading or the Schulte-Sasse reading. You can trace the argument or raise questions.

Post September 8-10: Cohen and Jaskot

*Please remember: you do not have to limit yourself to one of the questions, but can use your blog entry to explore an idea you noticed during the screening that did not get discussed in class.

For Film: How are good and bad art distinguished from one another in the Third Reich? Is Cohen's film a form of political art?

For Reading: Consider Jaskot's article on Himmler. What is the relationship between art and politics? Is this consistent with Cohen's film?

Post for September 1-3: Kracauer and Triumph of the Will

For the week of September 1-3 (due Wednesday, September 2, by 9 pm), please answer one of the two questions on their respective blogs.

Reading:
What does Siegfried Kracauer mean by "mass ornament"?

Film:
The Triumph of the Will relies heavily on the visual. What actually gets said in the film, or, more specifically, in the final speech given by Hitler at the end of the film?