Seminar given by Andi Dorrer (GCLS) on 29 July 2020, in Logie 613 at 12:00pm or via Zoom.
WWI was not only the first industrialised war in history, it was also the first time that propaganda was used as an organised means of information warfare.
One of the reasons for that was that in mod-ern wars, monarchs and their militaries were increasingly dependent on the support of the people.
In 1914, the basic strategy of all nations to ensure this support was to declare the war as an act of de-fence.
This presentation will explore the origin of the Verteidigungskrieg (defensive warfare) narrative, the foundation of Germany’s propaganda strategy, and demonstrate its representation in dramatic texts.
Because of the significance of the theatre as a mass medium in early 20th century Germany, dramatic texts were perceived widely.
Andi Dorrer has, since February 2020, been a lecturer in and programme coordinator of the German Studies Programme at UC.
He received his PhD from Monash University in Melbourne for his work on German WWI dramatic literature and has published and presented extensively on the relation of WWI propaganda and its literary representation.
Zoom details: https://canterbury.zoom.us/j/97984254830 (ID 979 84 25 4830)
