FEMGEN 149: Technology and Fascism: History of a Paradox (COMM 149F)

Course Description

In the cultural imagination, technological innovation has often been associated with social progress. But the history of fascism reveals the multitude of ways that technologies have been harnessed by, and have themselves helped shape, reactionary movements and regimes. In this course, we will explore the multifaceted relationship between technology and fascism, with a particular focus on the role of gender and race. We will approach these topics from a range of angles, drawing from the fields of history, gender studies, science and technology studies, and media studies. We will also engage with a wide range of technologies, from radio to guns to the birth control pill; and with a broad range of "fascisms," from the 20th century regimes of Italy and Germany to the online Manosphere. Ultimately, we will illuminate and untangle the strategic and symbolic roles of technologies as they relate to reactionary politics.