"Give us our daily enemy today!"
Jews, Christians, atheists, Muslims: in times of peace, which we enjoyed for a long time, the preoccupation with images of the enemy, which gradually lost importance in the course of the European unification process and numerous alliances, initially seems anachronistic. However, in view of the current upheavals and crises that are increasingly dividing society, images of the enemy as an expression of conflicting interests and (religious) values are experiencing a media renaissance that is reaching an audience of millions. By adopting and transmitting them, often without reflection, we contribute to the consolidation of enemy schematisation, which is why the question of how and for what purpose enemy images were and are created in the past and present, and how they can be recognised and dismantled as such, is once again gaining in importance. But is it even possible to live without enemy images?
These questions will be explored by examining German illustrated pamphlets from the 16th and 17th centuries, which allow us to compare them with current images of the enemy. In this context, we will also look at their production, distribution and target audience. The joint development of suitable criteria for analysis is also central to the seminar.