Nature in the Context of the Holocaust examines the complex and often overlooked relationship between the Holocaust and the natural world, from Nazi environmental ideology and eco-fascist thought to the physical destruction wrought by war and genocide. The course explores how victims and perpetrators understood, experienced, and instrumentalized nature in radically different ways, including nature as a site of survival, suffering, myth, and exclusion. Students will also evaluate contemporary uses and misuses of Holocaust analogies in environmental discourse, while considering the role of nature in trauma recovery, survivor healing, and remembrance. Through historical, ethical, and comparative analysis, the course invites students to rethink the Holocaust through an important and underexplored interdisciplinary lens.
HGS 605/805 - SU26A2 - Nature in the Context of the Holocaust



