DATo
Active Member
Just to touch upon something Raspunsel said: From the book (Rise & Fall) I came away with the feeling that Hitler WAS intensely patriotic toward Germany which appears odd at first glance because he was actually born in Austria. While reading this book and taking everything into account regarding the information provided by William Shirer I came away with the sense that early in his life Hitler needed to be devoted to something he could look up to with respect - ANYTHING; however, he was contentious toward authority in every form from the time when he was a small child. In elementary school he insisted that the other children refer to him as Herr Hitler rather than Adolph which leads me to believe that even at this young age he had delusions of his own greatness and was possibly making himself the object of his own worship. He had a terrible relationship with his father (another authority figure) who was a minor civil clerk in the town they lived in. His father had pulled strings to reserve a job for Hitler when he became of age but Hitler defied him telling his father that he would not work in this capacity. He intended to become an artist.
It is interesting to note that Hitler had one very unlikely friend of his own age who was a model student and a generally well-liked member of the community by one and all. This boy's name escapes me at present but he did survive the war and provided some insights regarding Hitler's personality as a youth. This boy was going to be an architect and Hitler, quite taken by both the boy himself as well as this boy's chosen vocation, never forgot that. When he was Chancellor he was obsessed with the architectural transformation of Berlin for which Albert Speer became the designated, primary architect. The point I am trying to make is that Hitler drew upon his past experiences after he achieved power.
Touching further upon this, as I mentioned in one of my previous posts, Hitler was obsessed with Germany from the time his history teacher beguiled him with legends of the Aryan race, Teutonic knights etc. and he wanted desperately to BE German. As we all know he eventually made his way to Germany where he lived the squalid life of a bum. His artistic "talent" during this period was reduced to painting menus for restaurants and signs for local businesses in the town he lived in. At the start of WWI he joyfully joined the army to contribute to Germany's war effort. During this period he was assigned as a runner. A runner was a soldier who delivered messages by literally running from one outpost to another. This was a very, very hazardous duty. Other runners would sometimes feign sickness or other physical infirmity to get out of duty, but Hitler always volunteered for such duty. It is my opinion that Hitler had transferred what would have been a boy's natural respect for his father to an obsessive respect for Germany and was doing everything he could do, including risking his life, to become worthy of Germany. He was awarded the Iron Cross first and second class for his war duty. He was once shot in the leg and was convalescing from an intake of mustard gas in hospital when the war ended. As the story is told, a priest made the announcement of Germany's surrender to the hospital ward Hitler was in and there was a unanimous outcry among the patients of anger and dismay. Hitler was beside himself with anger that those who he later referred to as "The November Criminals" had sold out Germany, and as Chancellor found them (don't remember if it was some or all of them) and had them executed for treason.
A book written in 1951 by Eric Hoffer called The True Believer describes the psychology of mass movements. In it Hoffer makes the case that many people who join movements do so to compensate for what they perceive to be the worthlessness of their lives. By joining a mass movement one is absorbed into a group, a group which values your participation; provides you with an identity; and a cause to fight for - a cause which brings a sense of meaning to your life which was heretofore absent. It is my belief that Germany was the equivalent of this with regard to Hitler. Germany provided Hitler with the equivalent of the authority figure he could love and devote himself to which had been lacking in his early years. I agree with Raspunsel that he WAS patriotic with regard to Germany, but rather than a natural patriotism it was the misguided and warped fulfillment of a psychological neurosis.
Once again, I encourage you to read this Pulitzer Prize winning book if you have any interest at all in this subject. It is not only very informative but the writing "style" is excellent in my opinion.
.
It is interesting to note that Hitler had one very unlikely friend of his own age who was a model student and a generally well-liked member of the community by one and all. This boy's name escapes me at present but he did survive the war and provided some insights regarding Hitler's personality as a youth. This boy was going to be an architect and Hitler, quite taken by both the boy himself as well as this boy's chosen vocation, never forgot that. When he was Chancellor he was obsessed with the architectural transformation of Berlin for which Albert Speer became the designated, primary architect. The point I am trying to make is that Hitler drew upon his past experiences after he achieved power.
Touching further upon this, as I mentioned in one of my previous posts, Hitler was obsessed with Germany from the time his history teacher beguiled him with legends of the Aryan race, Teutonic knights etc. and he wanted desperately to BE German. As we all know he eventually made his way to Germany where he lived the squalid life of a bum. His artistic "talent" during this period was reduced to painting menus for restaurants and signs for local businesses in the town he lived in. At the start of WWI he joyfully joined the army to contribute to Germany's war effort. During this period he was assigned as a runner. A runner was a soldier who delivered messages by literally running from one outpost to another. This was a very, very hazardous duty. Other runners would sometimes feign sickness or other physical infirmity to get out of duty, but Hitler always volunteered for such duty. It is my opinion that Hitler had transferred what would have been a boy's natural respect for his father to an obsessive respect for Germany and was doing everything he could do, including risking his life, to become worthy of Germany. He was awarded the Iron Cross first and second class for his war duty. He was once shot in the leg and was convalescing from an intake of mustard gas in hospital when the war ended. As the story is told, a priest made the announcement of Germany's surrender to the hospital ward Hitler was in and there was a unanimous outcry among the patients of anger and dismay. Hitler was beside himself with anger that those who he later referred to as "The November Criminals" had sold out Germany, and as Chancellor found them (don't remember if it was some or all of them) and had them executed for treason.
A book written in 1951 by Eric Hoffer called The True Believer describes the psychology of mass movements. In it Hoffer makes the case that many people who join movements do so to compensate for what they perceive to be the worthlessness of their lives. By joining a mass movement one is absorbed into a group, a group which values your participation; provides you with an identity; and a cause to fight for - a cause which brings a sense of meaning to your life which was heretofore absent. It is my belief that Germany was the equivalent of this with regard to Hitler. Germany provided Hitler with the equivalent of the authority figure he could love and devote himself to which had been lacking in his early years. I agree with Raspunsel that he WAS patriotic with regard to Germany, but rather than a natural patriotism it was the misguided and warped fulfillment of a psychological neurosis.
Once again, I encourage you to read this Pulitzer Prize winning book if you have any interest at all in this subject. It is not only very informative but the writing "style" is excellent in my opinion.
.
