Nazi Germany Paper Topic: Suggestions?

Queen_Dopplepopolis · Jan 28, 2005

I'm taking a course this semster of Nazi Germany - it explores the inspirations and practice of Naziism in Germany... it is not a class that focuses on WWII - it is mainly an exploration of the Nazi conscience...

I've got to write a fairly size-able paper on some aspect of Naziism and, though I am a History major, this course is pretty far off of my focus (pre-civil war America).

Just wondering if some of you WWII/Hitler buffs could suggest an interesting and exciting topic to write a paper on.

Much thanks to any that reply!

BiggusGeekus · Jan 28, 2005

Possible topic: Stalingrad

Hitler's generals weren't thrilled with the idea of taking Stalingrad. Hitler thought he could do it and managed to pull it off. What he couldn't do was hold it. The Germans and Russians threw literally millions of people into this meatgrinder of a military campaign and somewhere between one and two million people died.

Social history really isn't my bag, but you could easily examine Hitler's commitment to Stalingrad and examine the ego involved. The movie "Enemy at the Gates" was based on Stalingrad, but it is from the Russian point of view (and there is some evidence that the main character was mythological so you probably don't want to do you paper on him).

Piratecat · Jan 28, 2005

I'm interested in the psychological process of "groupmind" that turns people who are individually moral and ethical into groups of people who perpetrate horrendous atrocities. There's some fascinating insights about the human condition hidden in that subject, and plenty of material to work from.

nakia · Jan 28, 2005

How about something on the Nazi's "myth-making"? I saw something on the History Channel once about how the Nazi's tried to tie their social movement into Germanic/Norse myths and legends, further demonizing the Jews. There was some popular movie that played with this idea as well, Raiders of something or other. . .

Just an idea from a non-historian. Hope it's helpful. If you have to write a paper on philosophy, particularly John Dewey, I'm your guy.

Desdichado · Jan 28, 2005

I doubt anyone would admit to being a Hitler buff...

I think an interesting topic would be Nazi science and military technology. It's pretty spooky how close they came to developing The Bomb, for one thing. I'd also agree with nakia; some of the stranger PR programs the Nazis went for based on pagan German mythology is interesting. If I remember correctly, that's the brainchild of Himmler in particular.

Henry · Jan 28, 2005

How about the origins of Naziism in 19th century Nationalism? Nationalism, not as we define the term in modern times, was Romantically more about the inherent superiority of a particular culture over all others, and culturally more about identification with the "nation-state." It directly contributed not only to World War I, but to the rise of Naziism afterward through its appeal to those same cultural "zeitgeists". It was nationalism that superceded the desire for a cosmopolitan culture the century prior.

Without the classical Nationalism, Naziism would not have been so encompassing as it did.

Piratecat said:
I'm interested in the psychological process of "groupmind" that turns people who are individually moral and ethical into groups of people who perpetrate horrendous atrocities

Nationalism "cranked up to Eleven" and fed through propaganda could indeed explain some of this. "we're so much better than them that they're not even human."

--and that's as far as I need to discuss it.

Henry · Jan 28, 2005

nakia said:
How about something on the Nazi's "myth-making"? I saw something on the History Channel once about how the Nazi's tried to tie their social movement into Germanic/Norse myths and legends...

Research Himmler's SS if you want some wacked-out myth-making.

I'm not a "Hitler Buff" but I'll watch the History Channel quite a bit. Nazi History is a fascinating subject.

Angcuru · Jan 28, 2005

It seems to me that most of the things that have been mentioned revolve more around what occured under the Nazi regime than aspects of Naziism itself.

CarlZog · Jan 28, 2005

Nazi economic policies and the economic turnaround the mid-1930s are often left behind in the search for why the German people fell under the spell of such a bizarrely evil regime.

Even Hitler knew, "It's the economy, stupid."

The Nazis were credited with bringing Germany out the worldwide depression to full employment. But how much their polices deserved that credit is up for debate, and much of the economy's strength seems to have been an unsustainable illusion fueled by the war machine.

fusangite · Jan 28, 2005

Two possible ideas:

1. How public pressure succeeded in getting the handicapped exempted from the holocaust.
2. How the Nazis employed Norse paganism in public rituals.