Adolf Hitler’s influence on the German culture in the 1930’s-1940’s
Introduction
Adolf Hitler, a man who is hated by many and loved by few. He is often given too much credit or just the opposite, given too little credit. It is easy for a modern society to separate Hitler from society and his beliefs. But from a sociological point of view, it is interesting to look at the Nazi party and study how they influenced culture and came to power. Changing a whole country’s belief system of what they felt was wrong or right through means of propaganda, laws, and many other techniques. When the ideas of being an Aryan and anti-Semitism developed a majority over other groups in Germany then those groups became compliant. They didn’t want to risk being an outsider from the norm. An interesting fact about when Hitler ran …show more content…
A single person is unlikely to protest in a sea of Nazi supporters but one might voice his/her opinion if they are surrounded by people with similar ideas. These individuals were the counterculture to the Nazis. They rejected the Nazis values, beliefs, and what the Nazis saw as norms in their society. An even more interesting theory that still exists today is the idea that resistance did not happen in Germany against Hitler. According to British historian A.J.P. Taylor (1960’s), “German resistance to the Nazis was a myth, his was a widely held view. Even today many people in Germany and elsewhere believe there was little internal opposition to Hitler.” Both theories could be possible, sometimes going against an overwhelming opinion could be too much for a person to overcome. It would be easy for people in Germany after World War II to declare that they weren’t Nazis and protest their actions. But that’s when the worlds beliefs are coming down on them and having anti-Semitic views would be greatly looked down
Introduction
Adolf Hitler, a man who is hated by many and loved by few. He is often given too much credit or just the opposite, given too little credit. It is easy for a modern society to separate Hitler from society and his beliefs. But from a sociological point of view, it is interesting to look at the Nazi party and study how they influenced culture and came to power. Changing a whole country’s belief system of what they felt was wrong or right through means of propaganda, laws, and many other techniques. When the ideas of being an Aryan and anti-Semitism developed a majority over other groups in Germany then those groups became compliant. They didn’t want to risk being an outsider from the norm. An interesting fact about when Hitler ran …show more content…
A single person is unlikely to protest in a sea of Nazi supporters but one might voice his/her opinion if they are surrounded by people with similar ideas. These individuals were the counterculture to the Nazis. They rejected the Nazis values, beliefs, and what the Nazis saw as norms in their society. An even more interesting theory that still exists today is the idea that resistance did not happen in Germany against Hitler. According to British historian A.J.P. Taylor (1960’s), “German resistance to the Nazis was a myth, his was a widely held view. Even today many people in Germany and elsewhere believe there was little internal opposition to Hitler.” Both theories could be possible, sometimes going against an overwhelming opinion could be too much for a person to overcome. It would be easy for people in Germany after World War II to declare that they weren’t Nazis and protest their actions. But that’s when the worlds beliefs are coming down on them and having anti-Semitic views would be greatly looked down