Propaganda in Hitler's Germany

1017 Words3 Pages

During Hitler’s reign in Germany, propaganda was his main method of control. He and the National Socialist German Workers’ Party, or Nazis, believed that to remain in control, it is necessary to prevent any and all internal unrest through strictly regulated popular opinion. The mission was to keep public opinion in favor of the Nazi party’s ideology. One of the primary aspects of their ideology was extreme anti-Semitism and racial inequality. Within years they were able to introduce this belief to nearly all of the German people through heavy influence by propaganda. Hitler was able to stabilize and dictate his Germany for years through propaganda aimed to control the lives of the youth, the opinions of the general public, and beliefs about the war effort and well-being of the country.
The Nazi Party had numerous methods to influence the opinion of Germany. The Nazis saw the youth as the future of Germany as well as whom they must control the most. The Hitler Youth Organization was one of the most influential forces within the youth of Nazi Germany. In fact, by mid-1933, the Hitler Youth had successfully achieved its goal to either “Nazify” or disband all competing youth groups within the country (“Hitler Youth”). Within the group, German youth were taught the ideology of the Nazi Party. This included education of their views about the status and treatment of Jewish people. As stated in a source of material for the Youth Leaders, “People differ therefore in more than their physical characteristics… their inner relationships must therefore be studied. Then we will clearly recognize the vast difference between those of German blood and the Jews…We then understand human inequality.” (Bytwerk). Their avid belief in social Darwinism, r...

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...nion. Everything was regulated, controlled, and closely monitored. Nazi propaganda influenced the masses in ways that were cynically genius. As the war came to a conclusion and Hitler’s Germany came to an end, propaganda could no longer hold its power over the German people the same way it once had.

Works Cited

Bytwerk, Randall. "On the German People and Its Territory." Calvin German Propaganda Archive. Calvin College, n.d. Web. 8 Apr. 2014.
"The Ghettos - Theresienstadt." Yad Vashem. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Apr. 2014.
"Hitler Youth." The History Place. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Apr. 2014.
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Seidat, Hans E. "Airplanes against England." Calvin German Propaganda Archive. Calvin College, n.d. Web. 8 Apr. 2014.
United States Memorial Holocaust Museum. "Nazi Propaganda." Holocaust Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Apr. 2014.

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