Download HW 7: Language and Power Nazi Propaganda Propaganda is

HW 7: Language and Power
Nazi Propaganda
Propaganda is defined as ideas that are spread (through various media) for the
purpose of influencing opinion. This term is often used to refer to material that is
used for or against a specific political agenda. Hitler and the Nazis were known for
their ability to create extensive and varied forms of propaganda, with words and
images carefully chosen and deliberately used to give life to old antisemitic
prejudices, elicit opportunistic tendencies, quench dissent, and turn neighbor against
neighbor. In Mein Kampf, Hitler wrote, “[F]rom the child’s primer down to the last
newspaper, every theater and every movie house, every advertising pillar and every
billboard must be pressed into the service subjected of this one great mission. . . .”1
By establishing the Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda as one of his
first acts as chancellor, Hitler demonstrated his belief that controlling information
was as important as controlling the military and the economy. He appointed Josef
Goebbels to direct this department. Goebbels’s strategy as Propaganda Minister was
guided by the maxim, “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will
eventually come to believe it.”2 He penetrated virtually every sec- tor of German
society, from film, radio, posters, and rallies to school textbooks with Nazi
propaganda about the dominance of the Aryan people and the threat posed by the
Jews.
Hitler is known for saying, “What good fortune for governments that people do not
think,”3 and his policies were based on the premise that most individuals are
conformists who do not think for themselves. Hitler and Nazi officials believed it
was possible to manipulate public opinion by using propaganda techniques including
euphemisms, name-calling, fear, and “bandwagon” (you are either for us or against
us). For example, the Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda changed the
words used in the army, replacing the word “work” with “service to Führer and folk”
and “worker” with “soldier of labor.” Writer Max von der Grün recalls the impact
these euphemisms had on him during his service in the German army:
It is easy to understand that if, for whatever reasons, these words are hammered into a
person’s brain every day, they soon become a part of his language, and he does not
necessarily stop and think about where they come from and why they were coined in the
first place.4
The scenario described by Max von der Grün exemplifies how the Nazis’ effective
use of propaganda shut down Germans’ capacity for thoughtful deliberation about
the information around them. Demonstrating his commitment to shutting down
critical thinking in Germany, Hitler instructed Nazi Party officials to hold rallies in
the evening, warning, “Never try to convert a crowd to your point of view in the
morning sun. Instead the dim lights are useful—especially the evening when people
are tired, their powers of resistance are low, and their complete ‘emotional
capitulation’ is easy to achieve.”5 Horst Krueger admitted that many residents of his
town of Eichkamp were skeptical of Hitler when he first came to power. But he
remembers how even those who were not able to attend rallies in the big cities were
eventually caught up in the spirit they evoked, explaining, “the citizens of Eichkamp
were eager to give themselves over to intoxication and rapture. They were
weaponless.”6 The Nazis’ distribution of antisemitic films, newspaper cartoons, and
even children’s books roused centuries-old prejudices against Jews and presented
new ideas about the racial impurity of Jews. Therefore, when the Nazis began
implementing policies against Jews, from the Nuremberg laws which stripped them
of citizenship rights to isolating Jews into ghettos, many in the German public were
already predisposed against this group of people and thus unlikely to stand up for the
rights of their former neighbors.
Many have remarked on the effectiveness of Hitler’s use of information to
manipulate public opinion. After his visit to Munich during the 1936 Olympic
Games, David Lloyd George, former Prime Minister of Britain, wrote:
Whatever one may think of his methods—and they are certainly not those of a parliamentary country—there can be no doubt that he has achieved a marvelous transformation
in the spirit of the people, in their attitude towards each other, and in their social and
economic outlook . . . not a word of criticism or disapproval have I heard of Hitler.7
Scholars, such as professor of philosophy George Sabine, describe Hitler as a leader
who “manipulates the people as an artist molds clay.”8 Ultimately, the effectiveness
of Nazi propaganda reveals as much about the content and strategies involved in
producing this information as it does about the audience that received it. When
exploring this history with students it is important to look at propaganda not only
through the lens of its creators (the messengers), but also through the lens of its
audience. Hitler and other Nazi leaders could advance their racist agenda because
most members of the German public believed the lies they spread about Jews. From
studying Nazi Germany we learn how individuals, especially young people, are
vulnerable to believing myths and lies when they are not encouraged to critically
analyze the world around them and make informed judgments based on evidence.
According to the Center for Media Literacy, “Media Literacy is the ability to access,
analyze, evaluate and create media in a variety of forms.”9 The Nazi education
system discouraged media literacy. Students were not taught how to develop their
own ideas about the images and messages that permeated life during the Third Reich
because the success of Hitler’s dictatorship depended on the youth believing the lies
disseminated by the Nazi Party. And, for the most part, the Nazis succeeded in these
efforts. Testimonies of German youth reveal that they mostly accepted what they
heard and saw as the truth, without evaluating the accuracy of the statements or the
harm these messages inflicted on vulnerable groups, especially Jews.
The success of Nazi propaganda in influencing the minds and hearts of many
Germans, especially German youth, demonstrates the dangers that can befall a
society whose citizens are not able to make informed judgments about the media
around them. By helping students develop the habit of asking questions such as,
“What is the intended purpose of the text? What message is being expressed? How
do I know if this information is true?” and the ability to answer these questions, we
nurture their growth as responsible citizens who are less likely to be manipulated by
malicious propaganda. It is also critical for students to learn to evaluate the ethical
dimensions of propaganda. Studying Nazi propaganda reveals that the effective use
of information to persuade the public is not the same as the responsible
dissemination of ideas. Many forms of media (i.e., advertising, political campaign
speeches, public service announcements) are produced with the purpose of persuading public opinion, and might be classified as propaganda. Yet, should all
propaganda—all information that uses emotion or misleading claims to persuade an
audience—be considered unethical, even propaganda aimed at causes we support?
What criteria should we use to evaluate the ethical use of information? In the
twenty-first century, when most of us have increasing access to a wide range of
information, it is especially important for students to be equipped with the ability not
only to comprehend ideas, but to evaluate this information from a moral and
intellectual perspective.
Make sure your answers are in your own words. Fully answer all parts of each
question and add explanation and/or examples for full credit.
. 1. How did the Nazis use propaganda? What messages were they trying to send?
. 2. Why did propaganda work so effectively for the Nazi party?
. 3. Why did the Nazis discourage media literacy?
.
4. What are examples of propaganda in society today? How do you think this
propaganda impacts the attitudes and actions of people today?
. 5. How does this article and the lecture show that literacy and language are power?
.