Propaganda und Kritik: Eine Einführung in Land und Meer

Abstract

The following article offers a historical introduction to the study of Carl Schmitt’s 1942 work, „Land and Sea: A World-Historical Meditation.“ Tracing the history of the work’s composition within Schmitt’s œuvre as a whole, the article argues that the work was composed both as a piece of wartime Nazi propaganda and as a tacit critique of Hitler’s violation of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. Examining the variants between the 1942 edition and the post-war editions of 1954 and 1981 (as well as the 1952 Spanish translation of the work published in Franco’s Spain) the article also considers Schmitt’s views on piracy, the emergence of capitalism, Islam, the elements of world history, as well as Schmitt’s treatment of the Jewish people in the text of „Land and Sea.“