Rise of Nazi GermanyWith the United States pulling a significant portion of their investments from Germany, people were now struggling, hungry, and perhaps even more concerning, angry. As it was mentioned prior to this, desperate times call for desperate measures. In this case, the country took a different path. ----->
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Both videos explain a very similar story. A desperate country looking for some semblance of hope. Adolf Hitler was able to provide them clarity on what has happened in the past (placing blame) while promising to restore Germany into a national superpower.
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Understanding Hitler
Adolf Hitler joined the German military for World War I. The guy was good at being a soldier too, but it came with a cost. won two decorations for bravery, including the rare Iron Cross First Class, which he wore to the end of his life.
Hitler was wounded twice: He was hit in the leg during the Battle of the Somme in 1916, and temporarily blinded by a British gas attack near Ypres in 1918. A month later, he was being restored to health in a hospital northeast of Berlin, when news arrived of Germany’s defeat in World War I. Like many Germans, Hitler came to believe the country’s devastating defeat could be attributed not to the Allies, but to insufficiently patriotic “traitors” at home. This was a myth, but this is THE ideology that allowed Hitler to rise to power years later. |
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The Beginning
Once Hitler (and the rest of German soldiers) returned back to Germany, there were groups of people who began to formulate their ideas on how the country should rebuild. Adolf Hitler (among others) joined a small movement called the "German Workers Party" which worked to unite the workers in the country that also had strong German nationalism.
Hitler contributed to rename the party to the National Socialist German Workers Party (formally recognized as the Nazi Party). It was in this transition that they created a logo that consisted of a crooked cross along with a white circle with a red background. In the early 1920s, the size of Hitler’s Nazi Party grew with resentful Germans who hated Germany’s democratic government, leftist politics, and Jews. The Nazi party consisted of radical beliefs that were fueled by hate-based and dangerous ideologies. |
Hitler and the rest of the party planned to overthrow the government, which would result in a complete overthrow of the country's leaders. The revolt did not work, and Hitler was imprisoned for treason for one year.
The country attempted to make him an example of what happens if you try to revolt, but deeply failed. Instead, this energized Hitler's base and propelled Hitler into a national public figure within Germany. |
Mein Kampf ("My Fight")
It was in this book that Hitler wrote (while in prison) that heavily influenced the Nazi party, and the ideology of "eliminating" others based on race. Mein Kampf is commonly known was a dangerous book that entails a great deal of racism and hatred toward others (it definitely does). However, that's not the entirety of the book. Here's one part of what he wrote:
"The spirit of nationalism and a feeling for social justice must be fused into one sentiment in the hearts of the youth. Then a day will come when a nation of citizens will arise which will be welded together through a common love and a common pride that shall be invincible and indestructible for ever." Breakdown: The spirit of loving your country, and a feeling of fighting for the betterment of others (social justice) must be connected into the hearts of the youngest generation of Germans. Through time, a generation of citizens will rise up and be connected through ideologies that are built upon love and pride. That generation will be indestructible for ever. And this is how he became so popular. He was relatable, and his rhetoric was built on providing hope for German citizens that did not have much for several years. If what I provided above was all that he wrote about, there could a be a strong argument that his book was inspiring and up-lifting. ---------> |
However, the book talks about how big of a problem Jewish citizens were in the surrounding community.
Hitler went further in his description in that he compared Jews to "parasites." This is a pure example of dehumanization. Dehumanization: The process of depriving a person or group of positive human qualities. |
By the end of the book, readers were energized with the idea of "saving Germany" while getting rid of anyone who was in a powerful position that benefitted from everyone's struggle. His book sparked a movement that called for a complete overthrow of what has been established after World War I, and a deep desire to fight against anyone who has purposefully hindered the growth of the working class.
Most (if not all) of the blame was directly placed on Jewish citizens within Germany, and its surrounding area. The book didn't create hatred, but rather it empowered people who felt like Hitler. It empowered them to pursue their ideology that was based on hatred.
Most (if not all) of the blame was directly placed on Jewish citizens within Germany, and its surrounding area. The book didn't create hatred, but rather it empowered people who felt like Hitler. It empowered them to pursue their ideology that was based on hatred.
Citations:
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/adolf-hitler-1
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/eichmann-captured
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/14/books/review/benjamin-carter-hett-death-of-democracy.html
https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/does-mein-kampf-remain-a-dangerous-book
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mein-Kampf
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/adolf-hitler-1
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/eichmann-captured
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/14/books/review/benjamin-carter-hett-death-of-democracy.html
https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/does-mein-kampf-remain-a-dangerous-book
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mein-Kampf