Performing the nation in interwar Germany : sports, spectacles and political symbolism, 1926-36

Performing the Nation in Interwar Germany argues that political aesthetics and mass spectacles were no invention of the Nazis but characterized the period from the mid-1920s to the mid-1930s. In so doing, it re-examines the role of state representation and propaganda in the Weimar Republic and the Nazi dictatorship. Performing The Nation In Interwar Germany Challenges The Notion That The Nazis Invented The Use Of Aesthetics For The Staging Of Their Mass Events. Instead, The Book Argues That The Period From The Mid-1920s To The Mid-1930s Can Be Considered As A Whole In Regards To The Development Of Political Aesthetics And Festive Culture. A Stress On Rhythm, Moving Bodies, Shapes, And Community Already Characterized Mass Events In The Republic And Strongly Influenced Festivities, Parades, Sporting Events And Spectacles Organized By The Republican State. Consequently, The Originality Of Nazi Propaganda And Representation Was Limited As The Public Was Well Accustomed To Mass Staged Events By The State And Political Organizations Alike By The Time The National Socialists Came To Power. 'nazi Aesthetics' Were Less Quintessentially 'nazi' But Expressed The Zeitgeist Of The 1920s And 1930s.--jacket. Bodies And Urban Space: Parades, Marches And Demonstrations 1890s-1920s -- Sports And Games 1925-1928 -- Staging The Republic: Constitution Day Festivities In 1929 -- Republican Nationalism: The Rhineland Celebration In 1930 -- Party Rallies And The Thingspiel In The Third Reich -- The Death Of The Spectacle In The Mid-1930s -- Like 100 Years Ago...: Local Festivities In Weimar And Nazi Germany. Nadine Rossol. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Front Matter....Pages i-xiii Introduction....Pages 1-12 Bodies and Urban Space: Parades, Marches and Demonstrations 1890s–1920s....Pages 13-33 Sports and Games 1925–1928....Pages 34-57 Staging the Republic: Constitution Day Festivities in 1929....Pages 58-79 Republican Nationalism: The Rhineland Celebration in 1930....Pages 80-101 Party Rallies and the Thingspiel in the Third Reich....Pages 102-120 The Death of the Spectacle in the mid-1930s....Pages 121-138 ‘Like 100 years ago...’: Local Festivities in Weimar and Nazi Germany....Pages 139-157 Conclusion....Pages 158-165 Back Matter....Pages 166-226