Nazim as Totalitarianism Essay

Hans Mommsen’s book, From Weimar to Auschwitz, presented an interesting look at Hitler within the Nazi Party. The overriding themes in the chapter “Hitler’s Position in the Nazi System” were the stubbornness and charisma of Hitler and the chaos within the Nazi Party. The weak leadership of Hitler along with the inability to concentrate power to one position helped lead the Third Reich to be a very frenzied and unorganized government.

Totalitarian societies are hierarchies dominated by one political party and usually by a single leader - in this case, 'Hitler'. The Nazis had many aims, which included: getting rid of communism for good, win over the youth of the nation, rebuild the

The Reichstag fire was probably the trigger which enabled Hitler to convince the Government that the communists were plotting against them. A young communist, Marinus Van Der Lubbe, was blamed for the fire and therefore the communist reputation was damaged in favor of the Nazi Party. At the March 1933 election, the Nazi party did not have sufficient numbers to form a majority, however the Nationalist Party joined the Nazi’s to form a coalition government and therefore gave Hitler control of the Reichstag. Hitler seized this opportunity and on 23rd March introduced the “Enabling Act”, which gave him complete control over Germany, however he still needed approval of the Reichstag to pass laws. The Nazis placed enormous pressure on all parties using intimidation in the Reichstag and used the “Law for the Protection of the People” to prevent communists from taking their seats in Parliament. The SS, (which was Hitler’s own private army), physically beat members of

According to Fredrich’s “six point syndrome”, a totalitarian state must consist of an official ideology, a single mass party, terroristic police control, monopoly control of the media and arms and central control of the economy. During the Nazi Reich between 1933-1939, under Hitler as Fuhrer (supreme leader), the Nazi regime was able to successfully achieve aspects of totalitarianism by exerting tight control of the media and police; leading to control of certain aspects of German social, political, legal, economical and cultural life. However, there are significant features of the Nazi regime that simply fail to fit Friedrich's six, all encompassing concepts of totalitarianism.

The debate as to whether Hitler was a ‘weak dictator’ or ‘Master of the Third Reich’ is one that has been contested by historians of Nazi Germany for many years and lies at the centre of the Intentionalist – Structuralist debate. On the one hand, historians such as Bullock, Bracher, Jackel and Hildebrand regard Hitler’s personality, ideology and will as the central locomotive in the Third Reich. Others, such as Broszat, Mason and Mommsen argue that the regime evolved out from pressures and circumstances rather than from Hitler’s intentions. They emphasise the institutional anarchy of the regime as being the result of Hitler’s ‘weak’ leadership. The most convincing standpoint is the

A Totalitarian state is defined as a government that subordinates the individual to the state and strictly controls all aspects of life by coercive measures. A Totalitarian state aims to establish complete:

Even though Germany was left in a period of struggle and economic weakness after WW1, Adolf Hitler would take a stand by creating a party that would help refine the structure of the economy. This party, when abbreviated, was called Nazi, would also create harsh laws and unrelentless punishment. Due to the Nazi party’s quick growth, there was an immediate impact on lifestyle and politics for the people of Germany. The long term impact brought forth by the consequences or legacy of the Nazi party included a population decrease and an increase in deaths. To make both of these impacts, Hitler had to overcome many hard challenges.

Even from before the Nazis took full control of Germany, their coordination was evident, and this continued through the Third Reich, effectively replacing opposition in government. Barely three months after being appointed as Chancellor, Hitler convinced the Reichstag to pass the Enabling Act in March 1933, destroying democracy and removing the power of the Reichstag. In April, the civil service was purged of socialists, democrats and Jews, again changing the composition of those that hold power in Germany in favour of the Nazis. These swift, immediate actions taken by the Nazi party reflects an effective tactics that limited the influence of any potential opposition from both within the Reichstag, and others who also hold positions of power. As such, the Nazis ensured that their will would be carried out.

When considering historians accounts on whether Hitler was a “Weak dictator.” due to his erratic ineptitude as a leader or whether he was actually “The Master of the Third Reich.”, it’s essential to look upon the historians argument and whether it’s credible or not. With a look at the differing historian’s views it’s evident that there’s clear difference between the historians viewpoints; some portray Hitler to be a lazy and reluctant decision maker and was merely “One extreme element of the extensive malevolence that was the Nazi system.” Whereas others argue that Hitler had reached a state of absolutism as he controlled all areas of Nazi government and thus tailored a social Darwinist bureaucracy which was driven to implement his world view” . Both sides of the argument can be divided into two different aspects: Some historians argue from an ‘Intentionalist’ viewpoint where Hitler had total control whereas others would argue from a ‘Structualist’ viewpoint thus suggesting Hitler didn’t have full control due to his poly-cratic style of leadership and there was more than one element of rule within Nazi Germany.

Totalitarianism is defined as a political system of government in which those in power have complete control and do not allow people to oppose them. Those in power are a single party dictatorship in which one party controls state, and all other parties are forbidden. Other important features that distinguish or help define totalitarianism include restricted or eliminated constitutional rights, state terrorism, and totalitarian rulers are known as ideological dictators. The government of Oceania, in the novel 1984, is an example of totalitarian society. Germany, under Adolf Hitler’s National Socialism is another example of totalitarianism. Orwell’s Oceania has both similarities and differences to the totalitarian states of the twentieth

Totalitarianism (or totalitarian rule) is a political system where the state recognizes no limits to its authority and strives to regulate every aspect of public and private life wherever

In short, totalitarian means a political system that has complete control over all aspects of people's lives. The very same tome that I previously quoted from contains this definition of dictator: "Dictator

A totalitarian state is a highly centralized government controlled by one political group, and usually one

The strength of Hitler as a dictator can be determined from his achievements and militaristic plans, whilst Hitler as a weak dictator is more commonly associated with his temperament. Factual analysis must be used to assess the validity of “Master of the Third Reich” whilst evaluating numerous historians’ democratic views. The intentionalist theory of a dictatorship defined by a structuralist and polycratic view is explored in Historical author, Hans Mommsen’s “Weak Dictator Verses the Master of the Reich”. Contrastingly, allegory of “National Socialism can be Called Hitlerism” is explored though a social Darwinist bureaucracy, by historian Alan Bullock. Counterarguments of Hitler’s strengths and weaknesses can be assessed through his decision making but also his ability to implement his idealistic opinions on the general population of Germany.

Nazi Propaganda was devoted to portraying Adolf Hitler as an almighty leader with calmative power with the view of ‘one leader, one party and one ideology’. This image of Hitler was easy to conceive giving the result of the holocaust and the creation of the Nazi state. However, leaving propaganda aside, there have been many historiographical debates as to whether Adolf Hitler was a weak or strong dictator, from Norman Rich claiming he was a master in the Third Reich, to Hans Mommsen who stated Hitler was a weak dictator. This essay will argue that hitler was an almighty dictator by focusing on Hitler as a charismatic leader using evidence of Hitler as a charismatic leader, the structure of the Nazi state and concept of a Volksgeist.