Dharshini Karthikeyan - Week 10 - Hitler: From Poverty to Power
Adolf Hitler is arguably the most powerful man who has ever lived. As terrible as he was, it’s important to acknowledge the immense amount of power he gained during his lifetime, and how his actions will continue to impact our society for decades to come. How did a poor man from a small Austrian village gain enough power to start a world war?
Hitler started off as another common aspirant in the German Workers’ Party, which soon became known as the Nazi Party. He went from member to leader using his strong propaganda and oratorical skills. Hitler’s main goal was not Jewish persecution for a long time, and his main motivation was to bring glory to Germany and Austria, which stemmed from a childhood of resentment Germany faced from other European countries. Hitler is a prime example of how skills such as persuasion and being able to effectively spread propaganda are very important in order to gain power.
Hitler was also able to rise to power by causing civil unrest. Hitler used the rising tension from economic challenges in Germany in the 1920s, and the Germans’ growing hate for their inefficient democratic regime in order to foster fear and discord. Hitler addressed political meeting in Munich in order to create a new German order to replace the inefficient and incompetent regime previously in place. Because Hitler was the Germans’ only option, many of them hailed Hitler as their savior and were ready to help him accomplish his plans.
It was only after gaining the support of millions of Germans and establishing himself as an individual with power, did Hitler reveal that his greatest dream was to rid the world of what he considered “inferior” races. This dark turn of events worried Germans who only supported Hitler in hopes of him gaining new land to add to German territory, but Hitler expected the worry of his fellow party as he installed the last way he used to maintain power: fear.
Fear and state terrorism was the Nazi Party’s most distinctive trait, and it is what most people remember about Hitler and the Nazi Party today. Using the S.S. and the Gestapo, Hitler and the Nazi Party publicly executed individuals against their cause in order to maintain Germany as a Nazi supporting state.
Hitler used the three pillars of tyranny in order to maintain his power; persuasive propaganda, civil unrest and disorder, and fear.
Hi Dharshini! I agree with you, the things that Hitler was allowed to get away with before intervention was appalling. For instance, after WWII, the Treaty of Versailles was established, and certain rules were laid out for countries to follow to maintain peace. Before the war started, Hitler was able to get away with breaking the rules of the treaty numerous times, specifically when: Germany stopped paying reparations, Germany rearmed, Germany formed alliances with Mussolini and Japan, Germany militarized the Rhineland, Germany bombed Guernica, Germany annexed Austria, Germany seized Sudetenland, Germany took Czechoslovakia, and when Germany formed the Nazi-Soviet Pact. Additionally, Hitler and the Nazi party committed horrible acts during the war itself, since these events are just what led up to it. Overall, the amount of power he built up and exercised during his dictatorship was immense, and the fact that he was able to commit such acts and gain so much power is extremely concerning.
ReplyDeleteHi Dharshini! Your blog was very eye-catching, as it contained the infamous name of Hitler. I found your short biography and analysis of Hitler's life and early career to be very educational. In a time of political unrest and desperation in Germany, Hitler's usage of powerful and emotional rhetoric gained him a cult following. Furthermore, still scarred by the Great War, the other countries tried to use the strategy of appeasing Hitler, lest they enter another war. However, this tactic of appeasing only increased how daring he was. Hitler broke treaty rules, taking over territories that weren't his, and then full-on refusing to pay reparations. Although, not paying reparations would arguably be the right choice, as it was an unnecessary punishment that worsened the economic people in Germany, potentially further angering them, and directly stating money as a potential incentive for war. While most certainly a distasteful figure, he was certainly good at using propaganda and intense rhetoric to create an echo chamber and gain support.
ReplyDeleteHi Dharshini!
ReplyDeleteYour analysis of Hitler's rapid rise to power is extremely insightful. It is so eye-opening to analyze how someone so evil and garner such an immense amount of support for himself in such a short time. It is scary to think that something like this can happen again in the future, considering how it has happened in the past. Society is made up by the people who rule and live in it, if the one ruling gets becomes corrupt, turns evil and starts to abuse their position for personal egotistical gain, that society will surely come to its demise soon. Hitler made the lives of millions of people living hell, and is surely remembered in history as one of the most evil humans to every exist. It is concerning how even though most countries knew that there was a genocide going on, nobody really did much to stop it until it was already too late. Since Hitler also committed suicide, it is a shame that he was never truly punished for what he did, apart from the legacy of hatred that he left behind.