In the novel Ordinary Men by Christopher Browning there contains a thesis in which the novel is centered around. This thesis is the theory that these ordinary people could commit these atrocities in the Holocaust because of the pressure from their peers and country that were participating in these appalling acts of violence and massacres of innocent people. The basis of this novel relies on the need to show that these men were not necessarily physically forced to commit these heinous acts, but that
Christopher Browning is an American historian whose research mainly focuses on Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. Browning has been teaching about this specific field for thirty years, since 1974. He has published many different notable books in regards to Nazi Germany and the events that occurred during the time of the Holocaust. Some of the books written by Browning are, Remembering Survival: Inside a Nazi Slave Labor Camp (2010), The Final Solution and the German Foreign Office (1978), and Nazi
Ordinary Men by Christopher Browning I. Ordinary Men is the disconcerting examination of how a typical unit of middle-aged reserve policemen became active participants in the slaughter of tens of thousands of Polish Jews. Reserve Police Battalion 101 was made up of approximately 500 men most from working and lower-middle-class neighborhoods in Hamburg Germany. They were police reservists, not trained in combat, some of whom worked with and had been friendly with Jews before the war.
In the book “Ordinary Men” by Christopher R. Browning, he shows a different side of the Germans during the Final Solution, and how not every last one was a terrible person, by explaining how some men would hide from killing, opt out altogether, or say they were just following orders. Though there were still some who embraced their newly found jobs, this book argues there was still a sense of morality, but does not excuse the acts that took place. However, as much as the perpetrators were emotionally
goal. In many cases, this was achieved. Germany hoped to create lands free of Jews; judenfrei. German blood was perceived as pure, creating the need to cleanse the nation of the unkempt, parasitic Jews (Browning 44, 152). Ordinary Men by the historian and author, Christopher Browning, follows the men of the German Reserve Police Battalion 101 as they work towards this goal of extermination The story leads readers through these men’s first experiences “clearing” the area of the Jewish population, to
work which explores this question is ‘Ordinary Men’ by Christopher Browning, in which he investigates particularly the Reserve Police Battalion, which was active from 6th May 1940. This was a Nazi German paramilitary formation of Ordnungspolizei (Order Police), who were commanded by, and were serving under the control of the SS by law. Of these men, several were from Hamburg and many were ‘Reserve’ policemen as they were too old to join the army. The others were from a wide range of occupational
Leah Webster Dr. Turpin His 280-01 13 April, 2015 Ordinary Men Essay “How did a battalion of middle-aged reserve policemen find themselves facing the task of shooting some 1,500 Jews in the Polish village of Josefow in the summer of 1942” (Browning, 3)? This question is asked in the beginning of Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 written by Christopher Browning, a historian and famous author. This compelling book tells the real story of the German Order Police throughout the two world wars
Ordinary Men by Christopher Browning focuses on the true nature of the Nazi police officers during World War II and how they became infamous for their actions against the Jewish population. This piece adequately address the social context in which normal every day Germans could turn into killing machines with a sole purpose of wiping out an entire demographic of people. Browning outlines his research in his thesis which explains that “the insidious effects of constant propaganda indoctrination..
worldwide. One may assume that those who played a part in the acts done by the Nazis in Germany may have been mentally disturbed and/or sick, evil people. However, the novel Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland by Christopher R. Browning provides another alternative to this statement. Browning provides the reader with the idea that anyone is capable of becoming a murderer, especially when the opportunity presents itself. In his book he attempts to prove this statement
In the book Ordinary Men, Christopher Browning tackles the question of why German citizens engaged in nefarious behavior that led to the deaths of millions of Jewish and other minorities throughout Europe. The question of what drove Germans to commit acts of genocide has been investigated by numerous historians, but unfortunately, no overarching answer for the crimes has yet been decided upon. However, certain theories are more popular than others. Daniel Goldhagen in his book, Hitler’s Willing