“A fanatically hysteric romantic with a brutal will,” this is how Karl Alexander von Muller, described the personality of Adolf Hitler. Throughout Hitler’s reign, people close to him had the same outlook towards him, like von Muller, and many officers and generals plotted to kill the dictator. The plot that came closest to succeeding was “Project Valkyrie,” which was the subject of the 2010 film “Valkyrie”. The film incorporated many aspects that are historically accurate, despite a number of minor historical flaws. However, there are some instances where poor concepts are shown in the film as well. The historical accuracy of the film can be demonstrated by showing its plot, setting and characters.
A significant strength Valkyrie has in terms of historic accuracy is the precision of the plot and the plot twists. The director, Bryan Singer, sought to accurately represent history by using the facts of the plot with effectiveness. One of the areas of strength was how he described the conspirators in Hitler’s ‘trusted circle’ and why they wanted him out of power in the first place. One of the conspirators, Ludwig Beck gave a vague statement about this, “We must once more determine whether there existed any possibility of an understanding between the Opposition and Western powers,” (Valkyrie , 247). This is connected to the fact about all conspirators which is that they all believed Germany would be facing an inevitable defeat and would do anything to attempt making a deal with allied forces to save their beloved country. The actual events surrounding the Project were one of the most accurate features of the film. For example, codename “Valkyrie” was derived from a document approved by Hitler which would be put into effect if there...
... middle of paper ...
...erg." History Learning Site. Web. 01 May 2011. .
2. Gisevius, Hans Bernd, Richard Winston, and Clara Winston. Valkyrie: an Insider's Account of the Plot to Kill Hitler. Cambridge, MA: Da Capo, 2009. Print
3. "Operation Valkyrie." History Learning Site. Web. 01 May 2011. .
4. "Valkyrie - A Script Review." Northcorner.files.wordpress.com. Web.
5. "The Valkyrie Conspiracy." German Resistance Plots Against Hitler - Valkyrie Conspiracy. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. .
6. "Wolf's Lair." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 01 May 2011. .
7. 2008, June. "Valkyrie (film)." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 01 May 2011. .
Gerald Fleming creates the last sub-argument in his book, “Hitler and the Final Solution,” providing an in-depth historical evaluation of German fascism and the mechanism behind the Nazi Party bureaucracy. His main point of reference is David Irving’s, “Hitler’s War,” whose text argues that not Hitler was responsible for the annihilation of the Jews, but rather Himmler. In addition to tying in Volkish ideals to Nazi propaganda, other themes included were: “an intense nostalgia for the past, in particular for that long-vanished medieval past that provided the template for the society the Nazis dreamed about and that offered their main historical justification for what they were doing. - the Nazis saw themselves reconquering land that the German knights had won and settled many centuries before.
Gottfried, Ted, and Stephen Alcorn. Nazi Germany: The Face of Tyranny. Brookfield, CT: Twenty-First Century, 2000. Print.
Maier, Wendy A. "Adolf Hitler." In World at War: Understanding Conflict and Society. ABC-CLIO, 2005. Accessed February 4, 2014. http://worldatwar.abc-clio.com/.
Gesink, Indira. "Fascism, Nazism and Road to WWII." World Civilizations II. Baldwin Wallace University. Marting Hall, Berea. 3 April 2014. Class lecture.
Mckale,Donald M.. Hitler’s Shadow War, the Holocaust and World War 2. New York: Cooper Square.2002.Print.
The next day, Hitler said that the English response meant that the German attack would commenec on Britain in a few days. Looking back at how these events unfolded, everyone should be glad that Hitler made such a mistake. I, for one couldn't believe that Hitler made this mistake. Throughout reading this entire book Hitler usually makes swift, decisive actions that get results and that is why Lukacs stresses this string of events in the book.Overall, this book is wonderfully written on a very interesting topic. The reader is put in the middle of a war of nerves and will between two men, one of which we have grown up to learn to hate. This only makes us even more emotional about the topic at hand. For a history book, it was surprisingly understandable and hard to put down. It enlightened me to the complex problems that existed in the most memorable three months this century.
]Haffner, is a book which is hard to define. Only 165 pages long, Haffner has crammed more relevant information into this book than many twice its length. He observes Hitler's roller coaster ride through life and the country that he eventually took along. From Hitler's private life to the complete betrayal of Germany, Haffner evaluates the conditions and impetus for Hitler's accomplishments and failures. These include not only Hitler's psyche, but also the political arena of post World War I Europe.
Perhaps one of the most haunting and compelling parts of Sanders-Brahms’ film Germany Pale Mother (1979) is the nearly twenty minute long telling of The Robber Bridegroom. The structual purpose of the sequence is a bridge between the marriage of Lene and Hans, who battles at the war’s front, and the decline of the marriage during the post-war period. Symbolically the fairy tale, called the “mad monstrosity in the middle of the film,” by Sanders Brahms (Kaes, 149), offers a diagetic forum for with which to deal with the crimes of Nazi Germany, as well a internally fictional parallel of Lene’s marriage.
Goldhagen, Daniel Jonah. Hitler's Willing Executioners: Ordinary Germans and the Holocaust. New York: Vintage, 1997. Print.
The Web. 05 May 2014. The “History Learning Site”. Propaganda in Nazi Germany.
Although she was young, Anne Frank is the greatest diarist of European history because she preserved a critical time in history, her work captured the human experience of the Holocaust, and her ideals of hope and optimism remain influential throughout our world today. Adolph Hitler was appointed the chancellor of Germany in 1933. The Nazi regime promised a better future, appealing to the unemployed, youth, and lower-middle class. Hitler was a mesmerizing speaker, capturing the dreams of many and gaining support among the public. However, this “political savior” had different intentions for the Jews.
Excluding all the tragic things Hitler did, this shows life through his eyes. Adolf Hitler was a Nazi German leader who attempted genocide and was part of one of the worst wars, WWII. Hitler took up the role of initiating the Holocaust, which ended up in the death of numerous Jews. Hitler did not do particularly well in school, leaving formal education in 1905. Unable to settle into a regular job, he drifted.
He had a group of leaders, the SS, who were Nazis that willingly took any task given, including the mass murder of millions of Jews due to his belief that they were enemies to Germany. German citizens were talked into participating or believing in the most extreme of things, like violent pogroms, deportations, attacks, and executions. Through the novel’s perspicacity of the Third Reich, readers can see how Hitler’s reign was a controversial time period summed up by courage, extremity, and most important of all, loyalty. The main purpose of the book was to emphasize how far fear of Hitler’s power, motivation to create a powerful Germany, and loyalty to the cause took Germany during the Third Reich. During the Third Reich, Germany was able to successfully conquer all of Eastern Europe and many parts of Western Europe, mainly by incentive.
Addington, Larry H., The Blitzkrieg Era and the German General Staff, 1865-1941 (New Jersey, 1971)
Mann writes this story shortly after the first World War through the eyes of a German Professor. The story takes place in Munich, Germany in the year 1926 where the Professor and his family prepare themselves for a party in the late afternoon (Mann 2). The results of the Great War are present throughout the entir...