HIST 635 Modernity, Revolution and Totalitarianism

Written Assignment
Vitalie Sprinceana

Kershaw, Ian. 2001. The ”Hitler myth”: image and reality in the Third Reich. Oxford University
Press.

Ian Kershaw’s book “The Hitler Myth” represents a sociological inquiry into the social

roots of Nazism more generally, and into the figure of Adolf Hitler and his astounding popularity

more specifically. Contrary to many traditional approaches to the Hitler’s figure that use a

narrative that explains the strength and pervasiveness of the Fuhrer figure solely in terms of a

successful effort of the Nazi propaganda machine, Kershaw argues that the huge popularity of

Hitler had also roots in the general mood and concerns of the German population in the 30s.

Kershaw’s thesis is then that the impressive attractiveness of the Fuhrer-s figure - the Hitler

myth – and its ability to overcome political divisions and create political unity was the result of a

complex simultaneous interaction of cleverly designed propaganda efforts on the one side, and

socio-political realities in Germany in the 30s on the other side. This is not to say that the

ascension of Hitler was in any sense of the word, necessary or unavoidable. But this also is not to

say that Hitler has emerged from nowhere, that his immense popularity and appeal among the

Germans was due only to the successful efforts of the Nazi propaganda machine.

The theoretical framework used by Kershaw to explain Hitler’s rapid ascension as well as

his ability to retain his popularity among the Germans for a long period of time and to succumb

in the end is that of charismatic leadership, theorized by Max Weber. According to Weber,

charismatic leadership, in contrast with the ‘traditional’ and ‘legal’ domination, represents an

unstable form of rule that tends to appear in unusual or crisis conditions. It is directed not to the

solving of everyday problems of governance but to the ‘overcoming of supradimensional crises

and emergencies’ (p.8). At the centre of this conception lies the exemplary figure of the supreme

Leader, who is considered to be the possessor of some exceptional, even supernatural powers.

Personal loyalty and the belief by the majority of the presence of these supernatural powers of

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the leader is the clue that links together the Leader and his followers. The success of the

charismatic leader is relational and the concept of the charismatic leader is itself a relationship. It

is not enough for a leader to have some qualities; the most important thing for him is to be able

to become the focus of the expectations or hope of salvation. As Kershaw puts it into an

interview ‘Charisma is in the eyes of the beholder.’

Indeed, the Hitler Myth had all the ingredients of the charismatic domination – a powerful

Leader that claimed to fulfill an exceptional mission – to rescue the German nation from the

economic, political and spiritual crisis. It also contained the widespread belief that Hitler is an

exceptional leader able to perform the tasks that History assigned to the German nation. But this

still does not explain why Hitler became so popular in matters of months.

According to Kershaw causes of this abrupt ascension of Hitler cult and the Nazi Party in

the 30s are to be found in the general mood of the 30s. Three general factors appears to be the

most important: the feeling that the Weimar political system and leadership was bankrupt; the

gross underestimation of Hitler before 1933 by his political rivals (all of them, surprisingly

enough, did not bother to take him seriously) and the fact that Hitler was able to embody a well-

established and extensive ideological consensus – authoritarian leadership to break the Marxism

and to eliminate the consequences of the Versailles Peace Treaty (pp.46-47).

These factors were skillfully exploited and manipulated by the propaganda machine that

was able to construct and offer a multi-sided political myth of an exceptional figure. Over time

the Hitler Myth has presented an amazing diversity of facets of Hitler: a) the greatest expert on

stage and theater; b) the greatest master and architect in Germany; c) a military genius; d) a

successful diplomat able to get whatever he wants without bloodshed; e) the symbol of the

nation; f) the Providence; and g) the Incorruptible.

A striking feature of the structure of the Hitler Myth is its heavy reliance on

(pseudo)religious language and symbolism. It contained most of the items an established religion

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would have: messianism, the hope for a collective salvation, the tutelary figure of the Savior. But

all these elements were gathered under a secular umbrella – the Nazi party and its ideology.

The emphasis on religious and irrational/supernatural/mystical elements in politics went at

the expense of normal parliamentary practice. By appealing to the supernatural and the mystical

Nazi propaganda has succeeded to devalue normal democratic politics and the routine of

parliamentary debates and quandaries. This contrast between the figure of the Fuhrer as the

embodiment of the Providence and as the medium through which the nation would fulfill its

historical mission was maintained until the end of the Third Reich. The Fuhrer, as Kershaw

argues, would stand over and above the wrangles of everyday politics not only in relationship to

bourgeois parties but also in relationship to his own party – the NSDAP (p.130).

Kershaw’s book represents a useful insight into social processes that made Hitler possible.

It also shows how destructive for the democratic tissue was the combination of intelligent

propaganda efforts and specific political expectations of the German population.