Art, culture, and media under the Third Reich

Abstract

Art, Culture and Media Under the Third explores the way in which Nazi Germany used art and media to portray their country as a champion of Kultur and civilization. Rather than focusing strictly on the role of the arts in state-supported propaganda as other studies do, this volume reveals how multiple domains of cultural activity served to conceptually dehumanize Jews and other groups, sowing the psychological seeds for the Holocaust to come. Topics covered by the essays range from the design of the Nuremberg Party Rally Grounds to Nazi experiments with radio. Contributors address nearly every facet of the art and mass media under the Third Reich - efforts to define degenerate music; the promotion of race hatred and warfare through film, architecture and public assemblies; visual iconography and style; views of the racially ideal garden and landscape; portrayal and reception of art and culture abroad; the treatment of exiled artists; and issues of territory, conquest and cult. Anyone studying the history of Nazi Germany or the role of the arts in nationalist projects should benefit from this book.