‘The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari’ and Trump’s America

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Ron McAllister | The Observer

In 1920, a German silent film made cinematic history. It is still revered by film buffs a hundred years later. The film focuses on a mad hypnotist (Dr. Caligari) who brainwashes a man and then forces him to murder people while he is under hypnosis. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari may not be scary by contemporary standards, but it is a proper horror film.

The film was made right after World War I. Film critics at the time saw it as a response to Germany’s defeat in the war and to how the country was changed by the “war to end all wars." If you were to watch it now, you might understand it as a film about submission to authority.

Popular films have often been understood to reflect a nation’s unconscious motivations and fantasies. In 1947, the German film critic Siegfried Kracauer wrote that this film (among others) revealed the German people’s subconscious desire for a strongman (See: "From Caligari to Hitler: A Psychological History of the German Film").

In the period leading up to World War II, was Germany displaying a collective desire for an autocratic leader? German films suggested as much. And what about America now? Is Donald Trump the strongman Americans feel they need now? Perhaps this is part of the reason his campaign was so successful.

A study of contemporary American films might reveal an unconscious motivation similar to Germany’s in the inter-war years. Think about the relentless flood of superhero movies that have appeared in recent years. Perhaps you’ve encountered the caricature of a musclebound Donald Trump posing as Captain America. No mistaking him for Joe Biden or Kamala Harris. Some of these images were sold by Trump himself (for $99) as digital trading cards.

In my fevered brain, the word “cabinet” set off a cognitive connection between Dr. Caligari and President-elect Trump. Trump is all over the news now because of the people he has nominated to fill his cabinet. Caligari’s cabinet was a box in which his somnambulant servant slept. Trump’s cabinet is a room full of servile loyalists.

Trump’s cabinet nominees will require Senate approval, while other senior staff appointees don’t. Among his appointees you will find billionaire donors, Fox News personalities, media luminaries, religious zealots, people accused of sex crimes, others with little or no government experience and individuals whose careers have pitted them against the missions of the agencies they will lead.

While the size of Caligari’s cabinet is dwarfed by Trump’s, there are parallels to the film. Primary among them is the theme of unwavering loyalty. The silent film is alive with images of blind obedience to authority. This resonates with what seems to be the president-elect’s principal criterion for joining his inner circle — loyalty.

Caligari had one man to do his dirty work, while Trump has numerous stand-ins to do his. His new cabinet — a far cry from the cabinet he assembled in 2016 — is full of them. His first term’s cabinets included people willing to stand up to him (e.g. retired generals John Kelly and Jim Mattis). There will be no such dissenters in Trump’s newest cabinet.

Caligari was insane. What about Trump? Insane? Let’s hope not.

It is clear that America will be a different country if Trump — with the cooperation of the House of Representatives and the Senate (each of which will be controlled by the GOP) and with the complicity of the Supreme Court (to which he has appointed one-third of the justices) — successfully pursues the goals of Project 2025.

Supporters may cheer the outcomes. They will celebrate the realization of their collective fantasy. Detractors will dread the outcomes, fearing the society that will result. By 2028, both sides will see what the president and his cabinet have brought to pass.

We know what happened in Germany between the wars. Hitler's rise to power began in 1919 when he joined and subsequently dominated the German Workers' Party (DAP). He became one of the Party’s most popular figures and rose quickly to power. He increasingly enthralled the country with his effective use of intimidation, threats and personal vendettas.

I don’t know who said it first, but the idea that “those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it” does seem relevant. Now, that’s really scary.

Ron McAllister is a sociologist and writer who lives in York.

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