Realities and Dystopias: The Literary Response to the Rise of Fascism in 1930s Europe in Katharine Burdekin's "Swastika Night"

Date

2022-12

Authors

Fallis, Sara

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Abstract

This thesis discusses the growing influence of fascist movements throughout Europe in the 1930s and their interactions with prominent intellectuals. It looks at how literary figures responded to their new political movement, mainly those who used their craft to create a warning to their readers. The thesis focuses specifically on Katharine Burdekin’s Swastika Night (published under the pseudonym Murray Constantine) and the author’s use of dystopian world-building to share her concerns about the impending fascist success. Unlike Orwell’s and Huxley’s dystopian works around this time, Burdekin’s novel presents a unique discussion of how gender and sexuality are affected by fascism. This thesis compares the expression of gender and sexuality and the recreation of a fascist government to true history of the German Nazi Regime.

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Keywords

fascism, dystopia, Burdekin, Katharine, Constantine, Murray, totalitarianism, women and sexuality, Nazism, book burning, swastika night, revisionism, Honors College

Citation

Fallis, S. (2022). Realities and dystopias: The literary response to the rise of fascism in 1930s Europe in Katharine Burdekin's "Swastika Night" (Unpublished thesis). Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas.

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