Autonomy and Responsibility in Nazi Germany
Throughout history, the struggle of people finding their rights in society has played a major role, especially in the Nazi ideology. During this struggle, societies tried to determine who had rights, what a person owed to society and the duties of an individual. Nazis believed in the Volk, which meant people in the sense of a race, not individuals. Nazis saw the Volk as the major component in society, and therefore based the rest of their beliefs on a person's place in the society on the idea of preserving the pure Volk. The rights a person obtained were based on achieving this goal of preserving the Volk as well. The Nazi view of autonomy and responsibility of the individuals in Germany at this time can be seen by looking at how an individual in Germany was defined, how they reacted to those not considered Germans, and how they treated their own citizens once they were officially recognized.
After World War I, there was a spiritual void left within the people of Germany. The outcome of the war had ripped the German society along the class lines causing great stress and tension among the people. The people of Germany had believed all along that they were winning the war, and therefore the news of surrender came as a great shock to them. To make things worse, the peace treaty established placed the entire fault of the war on Germany and left them responsible for paying for the costs of the war for all who were involved. This sparked a conflict between the middle and working classes in society. Then, the depression followed, creating even more unhappiness among the people. With all of this unhappiness because of the class divisions and the depression, the Nazi...
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...It was not a society based upon rights for the good of the individual.
End Notes
1 "The Nazi Program." Perry M. Rogers. Aspects of a Western Civilization Volume II:
Problems and Sources in History. (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall,
1997), 311
2 "The Jewish Peril." Rogers, Aspects of a Western Civilization, 396
3 "The Jewish Peril." Rogers, Aspects of a Western Civilization, 396
4 "The Jewish Peril," "Not a Single Jew," and "Law for the Protection of German Blood
and German Honor." Rogers, Aspects of a Western Civilization, 396-399
5 "Gas." Rogers, Aspects of a Western Civilization, 416
6 "The Nazi Program." Rogers, Aspects of a Western Civilization, 311-312
7 "Speech on the Treaty of Versailles." Rogers, Aspects of a Western Civilization, 313
8 "The Nazi Program." Rogers, Aspects of a Western Civilization, 312
Germany under the rule of the National Socialist German Workers’ Party believed they were superior to the peoples of all other nations and all individual efforts were to be performed for the betterment of the German State. Germany’s loss in World War I resulted in the Peace Treaty of Versailles, which created tremendous economic and social hardships on Germany. Germany had to make reparations to the Allied and Associated Governments involved in World War I. As a result, Adolf Hitler gradually embarked upon his rise to power in Germany creating the National Socialist German Workers’ Party. As part of the surrender terms of World War I, Germany was forced to sign the Peace Treaty of Versailles, which held Germany responsible for the war. The country went bankrupt, millions of Germans were without work and food, and the nation was in despair and turmoil. Adolf Hitler’s rise to power began during these very difficult economic and social times. In the fall of 1919, Hitler began to attend meetings of a small nationalist group called the German Workers’ Party. Hitler soon took control over the group and renamed it the National Socialist German Workers’ Party. The group later became known as the Nazi Party. The Nazis called for the union into one nation of all Germans. They demanded that citizens of non-German descent or of the Jewish religion be deprived of German citizenship and also called for the annulment of the Peace Treaty of Versailles. These demands were the primary cause for the Nazi Party to compose the document The Program of the National Socialist German Workers’ Party in 1920.
Article 231 of the Treaty of Versailles reads: "The Allied and Associated Governments affirm and Germany accepts the responsibility of Germany and her allies for causing all the loss and damage to which the Allied and Associated Governments and their nationals have been subjected as a consequence of the war imposed upon them by the aggression of Germany and her allies."(1) These words fueled the Nazi Party's rise to power and ignition of a Second World War. After World War I, the Allies dissected, punished, and disarmed Germany to prevent the outbreak of another brutal war. Consequently, German lands, acquired by Nazi force, were given back to their original countries, and Germany's army was reduced to 100,000 men. In addition, Germany was responsible for paying immense retribution to all of the Allied Forces, causing German money to lose its value. The result of the Treaty of Versailles was a weakened Germany, both martially and economically. The Weimar Republic, a liberal government set up after Germany's defeat, was inefficient in handling Germany's massive problems. Germany's ill state was the curtain call for a change in the Weimar administration, and Adolf Hitler led the push for a transformation. Once in power, Hitler designed laws that redefined the responsibilities of the citizen. The citizens' duties would allow the Germany to regain her autonomy in the eyes of the world. Although the citizens worked to increase Germany's overrall welfare, the State did not attempt to improve individual well-being. The State held one responsibility. It must protect the lives of its people, so that the people can, in turn, carry out their duties for the S...
After The Great depression and World War I, Germany was left in a fragile state. The economy was ruined, many people were unemployed and all hope was lost. The Nazis believed it wasn’t their own fault for the mess, but those who were inferior to the German people. These Nazi beliefs lead to and resulted in cruelty and suffering for the Jewish people. The Nazis wanted to purify Germany and put an end to all the inferior races, including Jews because they considered them a race. They set up concentration camps, where Jews and other inferior races were put into hard labor and murdered. They did this because Nazis believed that they were the only ones that belonged in Germany because they were pure Germans. This is the beginning of World War 2. The Nazi beliefs that led to and resulted in the cruelty and suffering of the Jewish people
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