Hitler's War Against Artists Brief Description of the Lesson: This lesson is to inform students of the censorship of German art by Hitler and the Nazi’s. During the period of Nazi power, they censored any art that they thought was unfit and against the regime. This included the works of John Heartfield and George Grosz. We are going to look at three views of life in the city and compare the artists interpretations of what life was like. We will also learn about the German art that was permitted and became the propaganda of the Nazi party. Learning Objectives and Goals: Goal: Students will learn about Nazi censorship of art and propaganda art that was permitted in Germany. Objectives: Working in pairs, the students will interpret three artists views of life in the city of Berlin and present their opinions to the class. The students will learn more about what Hitler called " degenerate art. The students will answer key question about propaganda that Nazi’s used to promote their regime. Intended Grade Level: This lesson would be appropriate for students in high school. Dealing with the Nazi regime and the horrors of their power in Germany requires a certain amount of maturity, not yet achieved in the middle school. Having some background knowledge about Nazi Germany would be helpful in understanding this topic. Without previous knowledge of Nazi’s and their beliefs, you cannot fully understand why the art was censored and the propaganda the Nazi’s used. Concepts Covered in the Lesson: Content area: Social Studies/History Teaching Method: Cooperative Learning, Group discussion Materials or Equipment List: A copy ofFacing History and Ourselves, Holocaust and Human Behavior Three pieces of art; Albert Birkle’s Street Scene, Grosz’z Street Scene, and Bruno Voigt’s Street Scene Paper Pen Pictures on overheads for class discussion Overhead projector Procedures-Outline of Key Steps: To begin the lesson we will read pages 133 in the Facing History textbook titled Criticizing Society and then look closely at the three pictures on page 134. The students will read this silently at their desks with the purpose for reading question being: "How did these artists criticize the society they lived in through their art?" After completing the reading and looking at the selection of art, the teacher will break students into groups and they will discuss the following questions: "What is Albert Birkle trying to express through his picture of the Berlin streets? What message is Grosz trying to send with his painting? and Why do you think Voigt choose to do a painting similar to these artists and what was his message? After having some time to discuss the paintings, we will discuss as a class what the paintings mean and how these artists criticized the society they lived in. Following this assignment we will read an article titled Art and Propaganda. In this article we will learn about what Hitler called degenerate art and the propaganda used by the Nazi’s. Key Questions: What does degenerate mean? Why do you think Hitler used this word to describe some works of art? What were his intentions? How was propaganda used to influence people in Germany? Assessment Activity: The students will have two choices: Write a week of diary entries pretending that you are an artist in Germany. Describe how you feel as your work is censored and what messages you want to send through your art. The students must use factual events to support their knowledge of this issue. The students can draw their reaction to the censorship of German artists. Through this drawing the student must express their feelings about the limitation of the artists and use some words to help define their opinions.