In the lecture, we learned about Immanuel Kant and transcendental idealism. Kant, a German philosopher, believed we cannot know things as they are, only as they appear to be. Along with this, we have internal structures of reason and conscience. Conscience, or shared knowledge, can be thought of as an internal judge. There is no nuance or error in its function, it simply is. In Fyodor Dostoevsky’s “Crime and Punishment” (1866), Dostoevsky explores conscience as the inciting phenomenon for guilt and even paranoia and psychosomatic manifestations.
In the episode “Deaths-Head Revisited”, Rod Serling writes of a former Nazi soldier who revisits Dachau for vague reasons. He is living under an assumed name and is defensive at the suggestion of his previous identity. Mr. Schmidt, truly Capt. Gunther Lutze, visits the remains of Dachau and runs into a former prisoner named Alfred Becker. Becker and Lutze recall their vastly different experiences of World War II, with each thinking of the other as the antagonist. Lutze is then tried by a jury of his prisoners and found guilty. He, however, awakens, making the entire episode a dream or hallucination.
Kant’s idea of only knowing things as they appear to be can be applied to Lutze’s experience. As a Nazi soldier, he believed what he was doing was righteous and necessary. In the analogy of the pencil in the water, Lutze’s nationalism is the water bending the pencil of morality and compassion. Additionally, Lutze’s trial and sentencing is a visual representation of his conscience and guilt. Lutze knows what he did was wrong and utterly devastating, but he projects these feelings of guilt onto the hallucination of Becker (his conscience).
We also spoke in class about Chekhov’s gun, or the idea that no object is placed into a story without purpose. This is seen early on in the episode while Lutze is walking around Dachau before his reunion with Becker. Lutze takes a flight of steps into a camp building, breaking one worn-down step on the way up. This is a reminder to him and the audience that Lutze’s “glory days” are long gone. On his way back down the steps, he gracefully, but intentionally skips that step. This action, which is almost unnoticeable, reflects his denial towards his actions as a Nazi captain and the wrongness of these actions.
Outside of our lecture, I was reminded of Martin Buber’s “I and Thou” (1923). The idea of I-Thou relationships is seeing others with empathy and without judgement. It is recognizing the uniqueness of others, while maintaining mutual respect. In a flashback of Lutze’s days at the camp, he is seen commanding prisoners to perform exercises while shouting “I and you!”. This parallel, whether intentional or not, shows Lutze’s (and the Nazi party’s) disregard for other’s uniqueness and worth.
“Deaths-Head Revisited” is an exceptional visual representation of Kant’s ideology of guilt and conscience, through a fascinating and ever-relevant lens. It also masterfully ties in Dostoevsky and Buber’s philosophies, creating an informed and provoking piece that still haunts viewers 63 years later.
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