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In the Weimar Republic, popular culture was the scene of heated controversies that tested the limits of national cohesion. How could marginal figures like a stigmatized villager, a grub street writer, or an advocate for nudism become flashpoints of political conflict?
Peter S. Fisher draws on Siegfried Kracauer's trenchant observations on Weimar's contradictions to knit these exemplary stories together. Following his methodology, society's underdogs take center stage, pushing the headline makers into the background.
Frontmatter 1
Table of Contents 5
Illustrations 7
Abbreviations 9
Introduction 11
Chapter One. Occultism: Empowerment or Menace? 17
Chapter Two. Colportage: Harmless Pleasure or Dangerous Diversion? 67
Chapter Three. The Schund Law: Defending Morality or Undermining Freedom? 99
Chapter Four. Detective Pulps: Modeling Justice or Glamorizing Crime? 143
Chapter Five. Nudism: Weimar Renaissance or National Degeneration? 173
Epilogue 213
Bibliography 227
Index 233