The Nazi Party s Inner Circle Essay - 1538 Words

How can ordinary people come to commit atrocities against defenceless victims? Hitler was an evil man, or at least was prepared to employ evil actions to achieve his goals. There is very little in literature to suggest anything contrary to this opinion. Most literature suggests that while Hitler had some level of power over Himmler and the rest of the Nazi Party’s inner circle, they were also well aware of the extent and implications of their actions. Despite this, the atrocities of the Holocaust were not carried out by these â€Å"evil† leaders, but instead were the actions of thousands of â€Å"ordinary† people across Europe. In discussing how these people can be motivated to commit atrocities, I will focus on Christopher Browning’s analysis of Holocaust police battalions, along with contradictory evidence. I will also compare the motivations of Hutu civilians in the mid-1990s, and how their experience supports and undermines Browning’s theory. Browning is seen as a pioneer of Holocaust Studies, and his literature has drawn great respect and acceptance from the academic world (USHRI 1996). As such, I will take Browning’s theory as my hypothetical explanation of how ordinary people come to commit atrocities against defenceless victims. Browning believes that â€Å"indoctrination†, along with the pressing circumstances of a â€Å"dehumanising war†, pushed ordinary men to commit atrocities of which they normally they would have considered themselves incapable (Browning 1992). Browning’sShow MoreRelatedMain Events in the Career of Albert Speer Essay892 Words   |  4 Pagesand was vital to Germanys war production and design, which resulted in a close friendship between him and the Nazi leader Adolph Hitler. Late in 1930, a certified architect of 3 years, Speer first heard Hitler speak at a beer hall, was impressed with the leader and what he had said and early 1931 he enthusiastically joined the NSDAP, later known as the Nazi Party. 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