preview

The Influence Of Bureaucratic Theories On The Holocaust

Decent Essays

Since the end of World War II and the emergence of knowledge about the
Holocaust, there have been questions regarding how the genocide of Jews could have occurred, what could have stopped it and what could be done in today’s world to stop current genocides in other nations. Scholars have researched these questions for years, but the debate is one that is never ending.
Bureaucratic tendencies are what created the conditions necessary for the
Holocaust. Many scholars, such as Zygmunt Bauman, believe that bureaucratic tendencies such as following procedure, impersonal nature and having a distinct hierarchy are what made the Holocaust possible. Bauman states that the Holocaust was an organizational feat achieved through a bureaucratic society and …show more content…

Bauman says that the choice for the physical extermination of the Jews was the product of bureaucratic organization (Bauman 17). He says that administration’s objective is to solve problems (Bauman 18). The mission in reference to the Nazi regime would be to come up with a Final Solution. Management by rules can be seen in the Nazi regime when combined with organization by specialty. There was the Einstatzgruppen, the SA, the SS, the German military who participated in following the orders and commands of the Führer, but there were also the doctors, nurses and bureaucratic office folk who participated in programs like T-4 and the paperwork that made the Nazi regime so efficient in their task. Higher up personnel like Adolf Eichmann worked hard to make sure that the killing process remained impersonal. Impersonality was such an important aspect; special care was devoted to developing technology that helped make the process more impersonal (Mitchell Lecture 4). Lastly, employment by qualifications is a clear part of Nazi ideology. Qualifications were imperative. Not only did you have to be dedicated to the Führer, you had to be a member of the superior Aryan race. Bureaucracy helped create the conditions needed for the Holocaust to …show more content…

Lemkin created this definition after realizing in 1933, the similarities between the Armenian genocide and what was occurring in Germany (Mitchell Lecture 12). One could argue that the Holocaust is unique and separate from all other genocides due to differences in death tolls, execution style, organization and so on, but all genocides are fundamentally the same. There is a belief that a group must be exterminated, and that belief is carried out even to the most extreme conditions.
When it is accepted that the Holocaust is not a unique event, the question

Get Access