Roots Of Nazism Essay, Research Paper

Roots of NazismNazism was a very destructive force, led almost solely by one man named Adolf Hitler. Hitler raised his power status skilfully through indoctrinating the public extremely well. Education of children, and the promises of solutions to the most common and troublesome of problems brainwashed the public into following his every move. After gaining power in Germany, Nazism survived and flourished internationally through Hitler s maintenance of stern, authoritarian rule. A constant state of terror and bombardment of propaganda caused such a state. The Third Reich was founded on Nazi ideas, which Hitler supplied nearly entirely himself. Nazism could not have happened or succeeded without Adolf Hitler. Undoubtedly the most loyal of Hitler s following was the youth. Teen and especially child minds are especially vulnerable to propaganda and irrational thought, which made them the easiest target for Dr. Goebells job of brainwashing all the easier and more in-depth. From a very early age, children were told horrific stories and poems, telling the proposed evils and plans of the Jews. Der Giftpilz (The Poisonous Mushroom) was a popular book for young children, and was a compilation of many short stories and poems describing the metaphor between the Poisonous Mushroom and the Jew. At the beginning of the publication, the child would hear ideas of how “just as a single mushroom can kill a whole family, so a solitary Jew can destroy a whole city, even an entire nation.” (Waite 76) Injurious and abusive to children, Jews were portrayed as symbolising everything which is harmful and everything which opposes Germans or the German nation. Militarism also played a large role in the blasts to impregnate children with commonly thought immoral ideas. Innumerable publication praised the need for military use and conquest of the pure German race. “Hilf Mit!” was a magasine devoted entirely to militaristic ideas and glorifications; 12 million copies are estimated to have been in circulation. Arithmetic and mathematical problems usually involved examples of violent or racial ideas. High school and teen-aged people were by far the most influenced and targeted group by Dr. Goebells. Physics and chemistry labs in school dealt solely with preparations for air-raid protection and fire-protection for war purposes. An organisation entitled the “Hitler Youth,” however, was far more controlling than any other form of propaganda. The Hitler Youth encompassed virtually boys aged ten through eighteen and all girls aged ten through twenty-one. Stereotypes and roles were placed on them immediately, training men for firearm operation and combat techniques while teaching women housekeeping, cooking, and sometimes factory work in case they were to replace the men s jobs during war. In the program, militarism was constantly promoted and the idea of the Aryan race proving superiority over all others was claimed. Parents who discouraged the placement of their children into Hitler Youth were punishable by law and often times their children would be placed in orphan homes where they would be encouraged to join Hitler Youth. During Hitler s rise to power, the international economic depression had just passed its peak and many citizens felt a strong government leader would eliminate any problems that their society faced. Hitler promised solutions to nearly all problems thrown at him, and therefore received enormous popularity from the civilians. Increased armaments and military training put tremendous demand on most industries and unemployment was cut to one-sixth what it was just one year after Hitler was gained control of the country. Self-sufficiency was also a priority for Hitler s government, and through inventions such as synthetic rubber and gasoline, Germany soon became independent from other countries. Hitler also mastered the public speaking to a science, encompassing all imaginable facets of mass propaganda through lectures. Showing his great expertise in the field, Hitler was quoted as saying that “in the evening [people] succumb more easily to the dominating force of a stronger will.” Jews and communists were used as scapegoats of Germany s problems, and were generally hated by the German public. Believing that “what [a man] learns will principally be an amplification of his basic ideas,” Hitler spoke to the public about things which they had already known, but emphasising their importance.

Sadism was a quality taught subconsciously to the public of Germany through Hitler s lectures. Racial and political minorities of the world were thought to be inferior to the Aryans, and inferiors were meant to be food for the superiors. For any nation to succeed, Hitler stated it must have “the three fundamental principles which control the existence of every nation: the concept of struggle, the purity of blood and the ingenuity of the individual,” and followed through with those thoughts by created a constant state of competition within the Third Reich through sadism. Internationalism was for the weak and the communists, as opposed to the golden values of unity, purity and the national strength. Hitler s frame of mind and state of governmental operations can be summed up through his philosophy that “only through struggle has man raised himself above the animal world”. War and militarism were also strong beliefs of Hitler, as he thought peace would lead to the downfall of humanity. The idea of the Aryan race was a very popular one for Hitler. All throughout German history, the public had yearned for a cause to their hardships and downfalls. Hitler proclaimed that negative aspects to life were due to the breeding of inferior races, “for it is never by war that nations are ruined, but by the loss of their powers of resistance which are exclusively a characteristic of pure racial blood.” Hitler continues to say that “every manifestation of human culture is almost exclusively the product of the Aryan creative power.” The Jew was taught to be everything which was evil, everything which was inferior, and everything which opposed the Aryan force. The Jew was something which had no positive aspects of its own, so was forced to steal from other races. Hitler declared “unlike the Aryan, the Jew is incapable of founding a state, and so incapable of anything creative. He can only imitate and steal or destroy in the spirit of envy.”After his support by the whole of Germany, Hitler maintained a well-run country through means of an authoritarian state. Terror was a very evident aspect of life in the Third Reich, as SS troops could search, arrest, or even kill without warrant. Anybody going against the wishes of the F hrer, which could mean anything from reading banned books to hiding a Jew, could and most probably would be punished by death. Such acts were not common, however, as most people were obedient to Hitler because of the mass propaganda created by Dr. Goebells. Propaganda and brainwashing were evident in all aspects of every person in every corner of every city in the Third Reich. Control and censorship over mass media were probably the most powerful form of brainwashing done by the Nazis. Exclusive and complete control over mass media, which included radio and newspaper, was owned by the Nazi party. Book burnings also happened, which would eliminate all books banned by the Nazis in hope to discourage people from learning. One book burning, on May 10, 1933, was even made public via radio to extend to area of influence. All artists were forced to obey censorship laws made by the Nazis. Jewish art was banned, and therefore many Jewish artists attempted to flee Germany. All remaining artists were to join “chambers” which would regulate content and style of the art. These “chambers” were fearsome, and controlled by the Gestapo. Adolf Hitler, The F hrer of the Third Reich, defined and created what we now know as Nazism, and therefore encompassed everything while is Nazism. Through propaganda and circumstances, Hitler created a state of government which could be created in no other time by no other man.

Waite, Robert G.L. Hitler and Nazi Germany. Chicago: Holt,Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 1969Davidson, Eugene. The Making of Adolf Hitler. New York City:MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1977