A. Plan of Investigation Hitler 's Mein Kampf suggests influence from the works of Friedrich Nietzsche, and we now know that there were many other Nazi writers who were interested in his work. Nietzsche 's philosophy revolved around freedom of the individual and shaping his own destiny; in contrast, Nazism was intensely nationalistic and suppressed human individuality. This investigation will evaluate how these two conflicting ideologies became so associated with each other by comparing the thinking and core principles of Nietzscheanism with those of Nazism. Given the differences and similarities, I will then investigate how the need for the philosophical justification of Nazism made Nietzscheanism so politically attractive. The overall purpose of this investigation is to determine to what extent Friedrich Nietzsche 's philosophy influenced the Nazi party while accounting for any misinterpretation of his work. Research will utilize well-known writing by both Hitler and Nietzsche along with various articles and papers that examine Nietzsche 's views on Judaism and connection to Nazism.
B. Summary of Evidence
Comparing Nietzscheanism with Nazism
Nazism emphasized the superiority of the white, Germanic, or Aryan race and was notoriously anti-semitic. It condoned Marxism, Communism, Bolshevism, and all forms of democracy (Cohen para. 2).
Nietzsche 's philosophy introduced the idea of the Übermensch, his concept of the perfect human being. The Übermensch was the product of
With Germans of all outlooks desperately seeking solutions for the nation's problems, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party began their climb to power. 'Hitler was gifted with effective political talents. He offered an explanation for Germany's defeat, and a vision of Germany's future destiny, that played upon the fears, prejudices, and hopes of many Germans. He promised to rebuild Germany's power and restore its prosperity' (Isaacman, 16). This won the support of many Germans. Hitler was such an effective speaker that anything he said was believed even if it was not true.
The Nazis believed in ‘Aryan’ superiority, this belief contributed to the Holocaust. In the years of Nazi rule before World War II, The Nazi group organized policies of discrimination and separation targeting especially German Jews. The Nazi political group believed in one race Aryans, they believed the Aryans were superior to all races. Hitler was an anti-Semitic, he believed Jews were the main corrupter of culture, society and Germany. Non-Aryans were seen as impure and evil.
It is extremely evident that Jews were the main target for dire judgmental opinions, but there was one man who had a passion for Germany; he believed he was the ‘saviour’ of Germany, this man served in the first world war, and it was then, near the end of the war, recovering from a war wound, when Germany was weak and crumbling, he made a vow to himself, that he would be the one, to make Germany strong, he was: Adolf Hitler.
To fully answer this question one must look at the underlying philosophies behind Hitler’s leadership. What did he stand for and did his ideologies have any redeeming characteristics? Indisputably he had an ability to lead and motivate. He was revered with almost God – like fanaticisms by his people. This essay will set out to establish the basis of his leadership and within that framework, the nature of the man and his vision for the world.
Adolf Hitler is very much known for his barbaric deed and responsibility of the Holocaust-- possibly the most disturbing and most horrifying event to be recorded in history. The holocaust systematically killed over six million Jewish people, including over 1.5 million children that were victimized through a number of arguments that many believed was the cause for the destruction. It is difficult to conclude an overriding reason why the holocaust happened, although it is argued, however, that the imminent effect of the psychological state of mind of Hitler, along with the German citizens at the time, had a massive effect on what happened and what could have been prevented. Hitler’s anger and the country’s general
Throughout the history of political parties and factions, none has been so infamous as that of the Nazi party. They were the world’s enemies for a decade in the early twentieth century, and still continue to stir up controversy throughout the world. Understanding what the Nazis believed in, how anti semitism contributed to Nazi beliefs, and if Nazis still exist today helps to conclude why they did certain actions.
Mein Kampf is one of Hitler’s most highly recognizable publishing’s to date. Within his novel, Hitler strategically uses a political tone, while belittling and dehumanizing the Jewish ‘race’ as a whole. His proper and sophisticated style of writing persuaded extensive amounts of the German population to agree with his crooked agenda to exterminate all Jews. Hitler depicted his tyrannical proposals as necessary and described his plans to begin a “…holy war against the Jews,” in order to save, purify and unite the German state (Graml, 37).
In 1925, Adolf Hitler wrote a book that would forever change not only the history of Germany, but the history of Europe. This book became the manifesto of the Holocaust and Hitler 's reasoning for everything he did while he was in power. The title of the book is Mein Kampf which in English is translated to "My Struggle". Mein Kampf is commonly known as Hitler 's justification and plan to wipe out the entire Jewish race. His irrational thoughts about Jewish people are seen throughout the text. Throughout Hitler 's book he displays his over whelming feelings of antisemitism and Aryan superiority. Hitler, in order to justify his hatred of
In recent years the study of the Holocaust has been one of the most interesting topics for historians to debate and analyze. There are so many different topics to consider and to discuss them all would exceed the scope of this paper. In particular, many historians like to understand what events and actions ultimately led to the Holocaust. Many scholars have debated and interpreted the process that led to such a tragic time in history. Despite many scholarly opinions, it is evident that scholars tend to focus on Hitler’s rooted ideologies in the Nazi Regime, as well as the idea that the Holocaust was a result of failures within the Nazi system. These two major views and themes will be discussed throughout the paper.
In Masters of Death, Richard Rhodes examines what the Nazi Party of the 1930s and 1940s stemmed from, how they got to be in World War II, and why they had such an evil hatred for the Jews of Germany, Poland, and surrounding countries. When most people think of the Holocaust, they think of the more famous concentration camps like Auschwitz or Warsaw. But Richard Rhodes gives detailed accounts of more “non-famous” concentration camps. Hitler’s youth and upbringing is explained in the book and why some theorist believe that he convinced so many Germans to act upon the Jews. Richard Rhodes argues and describes in the book, “what made it possible for men, some of them ‘ordinary men,’ to kill so many people so ruthlessly?”
A few weeks ago, my friend Iz returned a book to me that I lent her last fall. It was my mother’s old Nazi Mind book. When she returned the book to me, a book that is no longer a required text for the class, I wondered how the class had changed over time. Since this year's Trial just recently occurred, I thought it might be an appropriate time to compare Nazi Mind then and now.
Nazism was an ideology that recognized its views and values in the management that governed Germany from 1933 to 1945. The main goal of Nazi ideology was to establish a totalitarian state where the government was completely dominant. Nazism was categorized by: having an appealing leader with the support of
The Nazi’s had the idea in their head that the Germans were racially superior, while the Jews on the other hand were a lesser race and were supposedly, a threat to the survival of Germany. The term Anti-Semitism, which means hatred of Jews, has always been used throughout Germany and Europe, but it really got bad between the years 1933-1945. The time between 1933 and 1945 can be known as the Nazi era. The Nazi’s believed that people in the category of “Untermenschen”, which meant subhuman, could be treated cruelly. The people that were classified into the category of “Untermenschen” included: Gypsies (Roma), Poles and Russians (Slavs), and the mentally and physically disabled. There were other people who if they disagreed with the Nazi’s way of leadership of organization, then they would too be tormented, arrested, and killed.
The rise and subsequent take-over of power in Germany by Hitler and the Nazi Party in the early 1930s was the culmination and continuation not of Enlightenment thought from the 18th and 19th century but the logical conclusion of unstable and cultural conditions that pre-existed in Germany. Hitler’s Nazi Party’s clear manipulation of the weak state of the Weimar Republic through its continued failure economically and socially, plus its undermining of popular support through the signing the Treaty of Versailles all lead to the creation of a Nazi dictatorship under the cult of personality of Hitler. This clear take-over of power and subsequent destruction of any
The dominant political figure of German history in the twentieth century, Adolf Hitler, was born in a lower middle class family in the provincial Austrian town of Braunau am Inn on 20 April 1889. In 1907 Hitler applied to enter the Vienna Academy of Art but his application was rejected. After the death of his mother Klara, Hitler decided to move to Vienna. He drifted from job to job, often selling sketches or painting scenes of Old Vienna and it was a period that he himself later called the most miserable period of his life. Many of Hitler’s views of the world were shaped by his experiences on the streets of Vienna and it is probable that his violent anti-Semitism dates from this time.