Department of English

While the current rise of fascism around the world is widely recognized, the international history of fascism is regularly obscured and misrepresented. With a goal of better understanding our present, this course examines fascism and authoritarianism through the study of film, literature, political theory, and global history. It will pay particular attention to fascism’s roots in capitalism, colonialism, and imperialism. It will also examine the role of racist, nationalist, xenophobic, and other sub-humanizing ideologies in fascist movements. We will study texts and works of art that were created in the heat of anti-fascist struggles, as well as those that reflect on the prospects for justice and democracy in the wake of state terrorism. The course’s historical scope will stretch from the early 20th century into the 21st. While it will situate fascism in a global context, it will focus especially on its history in the Americas and Europe.