HIST 137 SC - Eating and Drinking in the Time of Totalitarianism

Between the 1920s and 1950s, a number of Europe?s fledgling democracies disintegrated into totalitarian dictatorships. During the past thirty or so years, scholars of modern Europe have begun to question the degree to which these regimes really were ?totalitarian? in their expression of power. This seminar, therefore, is designed to explore the political and cultural histories of twentieth century Europe?s totalitarian regimes, including Fascist Italy, Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia, and others via the analytical lenses of various types of foodstuffs and beverages. Ranging in topics from the production of geneticallymodified strains of wheat to the politics of women?s labor and consumption (public/private responsibilities, shopping and cooking, resistance and non-compliance via eating and drinking, etc.) to, finally, the regulation and enjoyment of alcoholic beverages, we will explore these societies ?from above? and ?from below? by evaluating the degree to which everyday eating and drinking impacted both the construction of these notorious dictatorships and the on-the-ground realities of everyday, quotidian experience.

Course Credit: 1.0

This course information is from the 2023-2024 Scripps Catalog. View this catalog.
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