The Past in the Present
Poster from 1936/37: “WPA Federal Theatre Presents ‘It Can’t Happen Here’…”
Is insidious destruction of our democracy by a bureaucratic samurai with the soothing voice of a boys’ school headmaster even more dangerous than a self-destructive buffoon ripping up our values in plain sight?
— Maureen Dowd, “Who’s the Real American Psycho?,” New York Times, November 10, 2018.
The caption reads, “I’ve decided to accept God, but he has to become Italian.” The German here for “accept,” “gelten lassen,” could also be translated as “allow.” Source: Simpicissimus, May… Read more →
Richard Evans on Trump
The question might still seem hyperbolic to many, but sober, historically informed analysis along such lines can be informative for understanding both present and past.
Don’t be a Sucker (1947)
There is an infectious simplicity about this film, which rings true politically in these times, even if the history it tells was more complicated.
From the historian who brought us ‘Ordinary Men’
“But Hitler was a fixated ideologue with a strong party organization, while Trump is an opportunistic narcissist driven above all by the need for adulation. Hitler was the ‘little corporal,’ the man of the people, who feigned austerity, while Trump is a billionaire who flaunts his wealth and luxurious life-style. Ultimately, Trump seems far more a hybrid of Berlusconi and Putin, potentially merging kleptocracy and autocracy, than the reincarnation of an ideologically driven, war-mongering, and genocidal dictator.” “I would suggest that a major source of our unease — beyond Trump’s… Read more From the historian who brought us ‘Ordinary Men’ →
“The American Face of Fascism”
It is no surprise that the American face of fascism would take on the forms of celebrity television and the casino greeter’s come-on, since that is as much our symbolic scene as nostalgic re-creations of Roman splendors once were Italy’s.
—Adam Gopnik, “Being Honest about Trump,” The New Yorker, July 14, 2016
Fostering Historical Thinking with Brecht’s Galileo
Spring is almost here, which means its time to order books for the summer term. Summer in DC gets hot, and the summer terms are short, so I usually try… Read more Fostering Historical Thinking with Brecht’s Galileo →