Learning Update 3

Today I watched the movie Die Welle for my popular media presentation on Thursday. It is a German psychological thriller on the dangers of autocratic ideology. A teacher begins an experiment with his class after they mistakingly believe that an autocracy could never form in Germany again after learning extensively about the history of the Third Reich. It was interesting to see how the teacher, Rainer, slowly starts to implement things in his classroom to get the students engaged. At first he told students to only call him Mr. Rainer and to always stand when they speak to him. Over the course of the week as the students got more excited about "The Wave," they adopted a uniform, a logo, a hand sign, and even a website. 

What I really enjoyed about this movie was how real it felt. The student characters were normal high schoolers -- each struggling with different things at home and with their changing identity as young adults. These factors played into why some of the students leaned so hard into The Wave since it provided them with community and friendship they hadn't had before. This mirrors why a lot Germans were easily persuaded to join the Nazi party; the country was struggling and Hitler brought them together with a common goal and shared symbols/hand signs. 

The ending of this movie is explicit but I believe was necessary to get the main point across. Although the teacher started this project to teach his students a lesson, he himself got wrapped up in power and authority. The final meeting on Saturday showed just how easy it could have been for Rainer to continue The Wave and truly turn it into a fascist regime, but he said exactly what he needed to to teach his students a lesson. Unfortunately, since Tim was an isolated student before the Wave it was much easier for him to become indoctrinated by its messages and become an extremist. 

This is an important movie, especially today. Rainer was a charasmatic, likeable teacher who within a week was able to manipulate an easily impressionable group. It is a clear example of how easy it is to fall into fascism since they don't always begin as oppressive and often attract individuals who are lonely. Under the right social conditions I think it could happen anywhere.