Eclipse of the Sun, George Grosz

This piece was painted in 1926 around the time of the rise of militant dictators. What sticks out to me the most is that the "dictator", the man in the blue coat, is surrounded by headless people. This represents the brainwashing and the purging of intelligent opposition that was implemented to seize power. There is also an animal and a bloody knife---it looks like the animal, representing innocence, is going to be sacrificed. I think this relates to how the Jews and other minorities were blamed for all of Germany's problems between the Wars. For me, the cubism, the surrealism, enhances feelings of uneasiness already created by the red-cheeked dictator and his headless cohorts.