Entry requirements

General entry requirements

Learning outcomes

At the conclusion of this course, the student will be expected to,

- Know the basic chronological steps central to the history of Nazi Germany: this includes fundamental events in Germany's history prior to Hitler's accession to power, through the destruction of Nazi Germany.

- Know the essential chronological moments in Nazi Germany's "war against European Jewry between 1933 and 1945.

- Understand the contemporary historiographical discourse regarding basic categories of Holocaust studies such as "perpetrator", "victim", and "bystander".

- Be able to discuss the role played by anti-Semitism as it motivated the genocide of the Jews.

- Have an understanding of the manner in which historians debate central issues of evidence and interpretations concerning the murder of European Jewry during the Second World War.

- To be able to formulate in writing their understanding in the form of "seminar" assignments, and the final, "take home" exam.

Content

Contents and themes (a selection):

Intentionalism vs. Functionalism

Racial Biology and Eugenics

Persecution and Deprivation of Civil Rights

The Bureaucrat as Desk Top Killer

Ghettoisation Policy and Formation

Mass Murder and the Individual Motivation

Jewish Response and Resistance

Europe's Collaborators and Killers

Industrialised Extermination

The Response of the Bystander

Sweden's Response to Genocide

What the Holocaust means Today

Instruction

Lectures and seminars.

Assessment

Written mid-course and final examinations, both "take home". Participants will also be required to present short written essays in conjunction with seminars.

Attendance at lectures is strongly encouraged and attendance at seminars is obligatory. The course meets approximately 25 times over a 10 week period.

Grades: Fail, pass, pass with distinction/ECTS grades.