Utopia and Terror in the 20th Century is rated 4.4 out of 5 by 121 .

Rated 4 out of 5 by richibi from entirely worth a visit though Professor Liulevicius' presentation is not quite as objective as one would like from an historian, his picture of the violent 20th Century remains nevertheless instructive, convincing, and utterly compelling, if not inspiring

Rated 3 out of 5 by ASK60 from Solid Course with some Hiccups As COVID19 quarantine dragged on in my part of the country, I decided to take this course. It is a topic of interest to me as I grew up during the Cold War and had many veterans of WWII as relatives. The lectures were interesting for the most part but many aspects of history which I had been looking forward to were given very short shrift. The lecture on WWII for example included all of 35 seconds on Japan's involvement and the shape that totalitarianism took in that country. Conversely, almost four entire lectures were expended on Hitler and the Holocaust which was excessive in my view particularly as the same points were made over and over and over again. I was non-plussed by some of the characterizations of actions as "terror" most notably the use of retaliation against civilian populations for supporting guerillas. By that standard I am afraid many nations continue to be guilty of "terror". The professor also appears overly-inspired by one or two philosophers and cites them repeatedly during his lectures (most notably Hannah Arendt). On balance the course held my interest and provided me with some variations on insights into the interplay between the related concepts of terror and utopia. That being said, I did not find the professor as inspiring or as captivating as many of the other professorsin the Great Courses (most notably Professor Gallagher and Aldrete). Not sorry I took the course biut I would not go out of my way to take another course with this professor.

Rated 5 out of 5 by Dr Robodoc from Should be required in all schools While I learned only a modest amount (because I have read about and studies many of the topics) I think this course should be mandated for all high schools and colleges lest our young generations fail to understand the issues addressed. The lecturer does an excellent job. The only small criticism is that in the lecture on "Soviet Civilization", wherein the lecturer presents a crtitique of "Soviet Realist" art, examples of this perverse "art" form should have been included.

Rated 4 out of 5 by AndyG from Complicated topics versus uncertain conclusions. This course explored historical issues and events that, in many instances, are still unresolved and subject to widely varying interpretations and availability of reliable facts upon which to rely. At the conclusion of the course, the "student" will almost certainly be left with many unresolved questions to further ponder. The course was presented with much care and energy.

Rated 5 out of 5 by Mary Lee from Excellent and extremely informative The instructor is most excellent. Although I lived through many of the events included in the course, I learned so much that I never knew before. I particularly appreciated the sections on more recent events, even though I found myself somewhat upset by the violence described and, in many cases, the apathy of the world's nations towards modern genocides. I am so glad to have this information. I'm not sure how I'll use it just yet, but I definitely feel wiser.

Rated 5 out of 5 by theoldprof from Failed political experiments and their aftermath Prof. Liulevicius is one of the few TGC profs whose courses I purchase almost instinctively; the subject matter isn’t the first consideration, because I simply enjoy their teaching and know that I’ll be in for a good “ride.” He’s a specialist on European history, so his courses on WW1, Espionage, etc. have been especially enlightening. This course, which came out in 2003, is a sort of “top ten” of the 20th century’s most heinous political movements, bringing together such villains as Lenin, Stalin, Mussolini, Hitler, Mao, Pol Pot, the Kim family, and Saddam Hussein. In each case, these leaders promised some sort of utopian society, whether it was Lenin’s worker’s paradise, or Pol Pot’s agrarian Eden. But to achieve these, they had to exert more and more control over their subjects, eliminating enemies and leaving millions of dead citizens in their wake. The Prof draws comparisons between them and their philosophies, and gives us valuable background information (especially on the lesser-known movements). Keep in mind as you listen that this course is already over 15 years old, but one benefit of TGC’s older courses is a more comprehensive guidebook with glossary, timeline, and bio sketches.

Rated 4 out of 5 by Peter435 from A pretty good basic survey course Overall, I am glad I watched all 25 lectures. On the positive side this is a pretty good general survey course heavily weighted towards the communist, fascist, and Nazi atrocities of the 20th century. The professor has a very good speaking and presentation style. Body language, speech, pacing all good - nothing distracting in the least. Pleasant to listen to. I feel that I did not learn very much that was new to me, but someone with less grounding in 20th century world history there would probably be much new to learn here. On the downside, I really did get the feel this was a basic survey course that left out a lot of context and neglected other topics that could have been considered. The course was heavily weighted towards European totalitariansism, communism, and Naziism. I feel an opportunity was lost here to think about how terror has been used more globally - the dictatorships of Latin America were not even mentioned, I do not think apartheid in South Africa even came up one. And there is never a bad time to practice a little introspection and reflect the use of terror used in the the western liberal democracies in the third world in the colonial empires, and even domestically. On balance, I am glad I watched it, but came away with the feel I had really sat through an incomplete and fairly basic survey course.