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Title: Utopia and Terror in the 20th Century

Author: The Great Courses

Narrator: Professor Vejas Gabriel Liulevicius

Format: Original Recording

Length: 12 hrs and 33 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-08-13

Publisher: The Great Courses

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 179 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

From the trenches of World War I to Nazi Germany to Saddam Hussein's Iraq, the 20th century was a time of unprecedented violence. Yet while such monumental violence seems senseless, it is not inexplicable. If we can understand the origins of violence, we may prevent even greater horrors in the century to come.

These 24 necessary lectures trace the violent history of the 20th century, beginning with its early roots in the American and, especially, the French revolutions. With each passing lecture, you will see how the 20th century's-violence was the result of specific historical developments that eventually combined, with explosive results.

You'll see how

The most sinister development of all, however, was the notion that utopia was not just a perfect paradise to look forward to in the afterlife. Instead, utopia could be built right now, in this life. Such 20th-century ideologies as Marxism, Nazism, Communism, and Fascism embraced this idea willingly - even enthusiastically - and used terror to implement it.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

Members Reviews:

A Great Lecture Series

Where does Utopia and Terror in the 20th Century rank among all the audiobooks youve listened to so far?

The thread that haunted my understanding of modern history is why so many utopian dreams degenerate into mass murder, aggressive suppression of human rights and war.. At last, here is a rational and well documented explanation that gets away from the petty details in individual events that weighs down the usual histories. Utopian-ism is bound to fail because its components (unreasonable promises, the making of opposition illegal and inevitable terror) at always seen as necessary and used to justify all forms of crime. This should be heard by everyone.

Informative

Professor is well spoken and unbiased. Good overview of communism, Islamist and nazism. Would recommend.

One of my favorites from the Great Courses series

I thoroughly enjoyed this lecture. It is easy to tend to listen to history from the middle ages or ancient history and forget about recent history. This lecture probably does more to help you understand the world we are currently living in than any other out there. You can't understand the present if you don't have a solid foundation of historical context to build upon. It is akin to walking into a movie that is near the end and attempting to figure out what is going on. I was never bored. This is one of the few audio books that I fully intend on listening to for a second time.

Excellent course!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Utopia and Terror in the 20th Century?

The consistency across various totalitarian regimes that I had heard about but before this course did not have much knowledge about.

Any additional comments?

This definitely increased my understanding of how totalitarian regimes come to be, and the importance of both being an active citizen as well as recognizing the dignity of each human being.

Outstanding content

Definitely worth your time! You'll probably learn things you didn't know about these totalitarian regimes.