How Did Mein Kampf Contribute To The Rise Of Anti-Semitism?

The idea of anti- Semitism is not one that was born with the rise of Nazism and fascism as often thought. In fact, anti-Semitism is one that dates back to the Greek and Roman era before Christianity came to fruition. It is understandable to think that anti-Semitism was born and executed in the time of Hitler because he enacted and authorized one of the most heinous and detrimental acts against Jews. Granted, the idea of anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic acts have evolved throughout the years and evolved into a racial anti-Semitism that reached its peak with the rise of Nazism. While it is plain to see that the rise of racial anti-Semitism and consequently, the perception of Jews leading up to World War II played an integral part that made the

The German people bore the brunt of guilt and were seemingly left with nothing but resentment. The ideology of German Nationalism reached a peak in the First World War and despite their initial loss continued and grew rapidly leading up to the Second World War and throughout it. The title of Hitler’s most prominent book Mein Kampf literally means “my struggle”; while this documented the book primarily documented Hitler’s own thoughts, struggles, and personal life it can be seen as a mirror for Germany struggling in their own way for their once lost pride and redemption. The Nazi ideology was not solely one of pride or love of country, it was a pride and love of superiority of a particular people, German people. The idea of the Master Race i.e. superior race is not a new one but with the isolation and deconstruction of Germany, the idea was revitalized with the presence of Adolf Hitler built on the resentment from the First World War. The rise and promotion of Aryanism along with a racially anti-Semitic culture became the foundation during the Second World War that made the Holocaust possible. The idea of the “Master Race” or in the case of Nazi Germany Aryanism, was the first step in the isolation of Jews. The Nazis saw the “nation as a body politic” which fostered the advancement in duty to the Aryan race, seeing the nation as a “body politic” motivated the people to

In 1939, one year after the war began, the first ghettos were established and continued throughout the war, most notably the Warsaw Ghetto in 1940. The Jews became isolated in these large and dilapidated communities that were policed by German military police, the Gestapo. While the communities were cramped, the inside structure was run by Jews listening to German orders, regardless of the German influence, the Ghettos instilled a “sense of normalcy” to the Jewish population. This “sense of normalcy” was enough to appease the Jews regardless of the horrendous conditions they were subject to. The corralling of the Jewish population had already begun with the ghettos making it easier and more efficient for the Final Solution. The ghettos served as a meeting as the integral initiating point for keeping mass amounts of the Jewish population in one place. The ghettos filtered and sorted through Jews, non- Jews, and enemies of Nazi Germany which were all eventually sent to the concentration camps which was an integral part of the mass murders of the Holocaust. The Second World War provided the perfect environment for the installment and maintenance of ghettos i.e. keeping in the ghettos because of the given state and hesitancy of other countries to interfere