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Rationalis : An Examination of (Ir)Rationality, Legality, and Identity in the Third Reich and Shoah

By Ricker, Ariel

Book Id: WPLBN0100003058
Format Type: PDF (eBook)
File Size: 1.45 MB.
Reproduction Date: 22/10/2013

Title:	Rationalis : An Examination of (Ir)Rationality, Legality, and Identity in the Third Reich and Shoah
Author:	Ricker, Ariel
Volume:
Language:	English
Subject:	Non Fiction, Political Science, Holocaust
Collections:	Politics, Authors Community, Most Popular Books in China, Favorites in India, Education
Historic Publication Date:	2013
Publisher:	Lambert Academic Publishing

Member Page:	ariel ricker
Citation APA MLA Chicago Ricker, A. (2013). Rationalis : An Examination of (Ir)Rationality, Legality, and Identity in the Third Reich and Shoah. Retrieved from http://self.gutenberg.org/

Description
Since the collapse of the Nazi regime, there has existed the need to understand the motivations of Nazi genocidaires who undertook widespread massacre in the name of the Reich State. Popular films produced in English, academic theses published in Hebrew, and online philosophy and history forums composed of little known languages all indicate a global commitment to understanding the particular “why” and “how” of genocide. This thesis examines the legal and social vehicles that moved the Weimar Republic, and nascent Reich politics towards Shoah. Specifically, foundations of Nazi conduct are examined on three levels: First, as evolution of Jewish identity from homo viator to homo sacer; second, development of Reich law and jurisprudence supporting dehumanization; third, the different forms of rationality/irrationality espoused by SS guards, camp doctors, and Nazi jurists. This analysis contributes to global discussions of comparative genocide, semiotic square usage, and post-structuralist identity politics. This study will interest advanced students of political science and human rights professionals interested in genocide prevention.

Summary
Three-part thesis examining the (ir)rationality, law, and identity politics leading up to and throughout the Third Reich that contributed to the genocide.

Excerpt
"The charged environment of altered and un-made familiar or known gesture420 unfolded as part of the ongoing dehumanizing project wrecked upon the viator: to unmake his world was to unmake his originality and previously unquestioned right to exist. This externalization of the viator’s figurative disintegration was represented through the state’s de-objectification and subsequent re-signification of certain objects previously taken for granted. Two examples of this dual step towards dehumanization are the shower heads in the gas chambers and the trucks used for transporting the victims, both of which are explored in more detail in Chapter XII."

Table of Contents
Tables and Semiotic Squares Introduction Chapter I. Conditions of Transformation Chapter II. The Fluid Legality of Nazism Chapter III. Homo Viator & Formalized Social Rejections Chapter IV. Transience Chapter V. Semiotic Squares Chapter VI. Nazi (Ir)Rationality & Semiotic Squares Chapter VII. (Ir)rationality & Praxis Chapter VIII. Panopticon’s Contradictions Chapter IX. The SS Guard Chapter X. SS Doctors & The State of Exception Chapter XI. Nazi Language and the State of Exception Chapter XII. Shoah & Unending Singularity Chapter XIII. Concluding Remarks Paralipomena Lexicon & Reference