About this course
Mass killings have occurred at all times in history. The twentieth century, however, stands out in intensity, frequency, and the means applied to kill great numbers of innocent people.
This course focuses on the Second World War. The primary focus is the Holocaust, but it also investigates the many other genocides that took place simultaneously during the six years of warfare in Europe.
Through lectures, case studies, and visits to the locations of historic atrocities, we investigate the causes of genocide and the sociological and psychological mechanisms that turn people into perpetrators, bystanders, rescuers, and victims. We examine how the Nazi regime targeted a wide range of victim groups through persecution, deportation, and mass murder, with Auschwitz as a central case study, using survivor accounts to understand the camp through the experience of one person.
Syllabus
Fall 2026
Go to syllabusFaculty
Christopher Sparshott
Faculty; Teaching and Learning SpecialistPh.D. (Modern History, Northwestern University, 2007). MA (Modern History, Northwestern University, 2002). BA (Modern History, Oxford University, 2001). For two decades, I have taught courses in modern history at Northwestern University in the United States and Qatar in the Middle East. My teaching emphasises creative approaches to learning that builds bridges to the past. I am passionate about bringing history to life and introducing students to new places, people and ideas through innovative, student-focused pedagogy. Secretly, my goal is to turn all students into historians! In 2022 I joined DIS as a teaching and learning specialist in the Learning Lab and a faculty member in the European Humanities Department focusing on 20th Century Europe. Away from the classroom, I research and write about the American Revolution. I am fascinated by the minority of Americans who opposed independence and remained loyal to Britain. What motivated these doomed “loyalists” is at the centre of work. With DIS since 2022.