When the Democratic Congresswomen Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez proposed a “Green New Deal” in February 2019 to transform the United States into a more just and environmentally conscious society, she was echoing the ambitious economic recovery program adopted by the US government to rescue the nation from the clutches of the Great Depression. The New Deal became the signature project of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who entered the White House in 1933 and died in office in 1945. This seminar will discuss the New Deal in the twin contexts of the advent of the modern welfare state and the rise of fascism and communism. In doing so, we will assess the New Deal not only as a collection of policies designed to repair the flagging American economy, but also as a contested effort to restore trust in democracy in an age of mass mobilization and total war. Designed specifically for students who are in the early phase of their academic training (BA or Lehramt), this seminar will introduce participants to historical research methods and acquaint them with analytical tools that historians use to investigate the past.