Why Hitler Came into Power

by Theodore Abel (Author), Thomas Childers (Foreword)

13 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-0674952003

ISBN-10: 0674952006

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In 1934 Theodore Abel went to Germany and offered a prize, under the auspices of Columbia University, for autobiographies of members of the National Socialist movement. The six hundred essays he received constitute the single best source on grassroots opinion within the Nazi Party, and they form the empirical foundation for Abel's fascinating yet curiously neglected 1938 book. Although a number of scholars have drawn on these reports, Abel's own treatment has never been surpassed. Of particular value is his presentation of the life histories of a worker, a soldier, an anti-Semite, a middle-class youth, a farmer, and a bank clerk, all of whom explain in their own words why they joined the NSDAP. In the vast literature on National Socialism, no more useful or revealing testimony exists.

In a new Foreword, Thomas Childers discusses how the past half-century of research and writing on Nazi Germany has upheld Abel's original insights into the broad appeal of the National Socialist movement, thereby reaffirming this work's enduring value for students of the topic.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Extremely interesting and significant.”―Clifford Kirkpatrick, American Sociological Review

“One year after Hitler’s appointment as chancellor, Theodore Abel, a Columbia University sociologist, went to Germany and offered small cash prizes for political autobiographies by Nazi party members. With the cooperation of the government, he was able to collect about seven hundred essays… It was on the basis of an analysis of these documents that Why Hitler Came into Power was written. Now, half a century later, this book is still very much worth reading. More than a testimony to the excellence of some of the early efforts at describing the Nazi phenomenon… Abel’s study is at the heart of the current debates on fascism, national socialism, and the coming of Hitler to power.”―David B. King, German Studies Review

“The book’s main purpose is to measure, in the light of the author’s unique personal data, the relative importance of each of the main factors to which [Hitler’s] rise to power has hitherto been ascribed, including Hitler’s own leadership, the strategy of the party tacticians, and the favorable circumstances of popular discontent. The results are highly important… There can…be no doubt that the book makes one of the most original contributions to an understanding of Nazism which has yet been written.”―Arnold J. Zurcher, American Political Science Review

Paperback: 346 pages
Publisher: Harvard University Press (October 8, 1986)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0674952006
ISBN-13: 978-0674952003
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.8 x 8.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 13 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #342,933 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #886 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > History > Military
- #1063 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > International & World Politics > European
- #1250 in Books > History > Europe > Germany

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James

Five Stars

December 9, 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

A solid book, written from a neutral and intellectually honest perspective.

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Jerome Beck

Outstanding Analysis of how Hitler came to Power

December 13, 2010

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Written in the 1930's by an American sociologist who visited Germany shortly after Hitler came to power the author had NAZI party members complete an essay on why they joined the Party. In an introductory section the essays are analyzed and the factors that drove people to become members is analyzed.

This is the book to read to understand why Germans became NAZI's.

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D. Harris

Old but valuable study

June 14, 2010

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

The book is based on a study done in the early to mid 1930s, and published originally in 1938. (By that time people already knew what a problem Hitler was.) The study consisted of a series of more than 600 essays that were commissioned by Abel as a contest, essays written by early adherents to the Nazi party, telling about their lives and why they joined the party.

Abel says Nazism succeeded (before it failed) because of several factors:

defeat of Germany in World War I, and the Versailles treaty imposed on Germany at the end of the war, leading to social disruption, and that combined with the worldwide Depression;

idea of Germans being a "race" and how important that was to the idea of community or society -- and anti-Semitism was a part of that;

the Nazi party combined German nationalism with socialism (importance of the community) in their ideology ("Nazi" is short for Nationalsozialismus);

need felt by many of the German people for a dictator who could control society so that it came out the way they wanted it to;

Hitler's personal organizational and charismatic qualities.

Much of the book is Abel's commentary, but some of it is the transcripts of several of the essays in the contest. It struck me that probably those people had no sense that there was anything wrong with what they did, which included a lot of violence, prevalent in German politics on all sides at the time of the rise of Nazism -- and many of them, I can imagine, might have continued to feel that way even after the defeat of Germany in World War II.

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May 12, 2013

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

just the truth that we all have to face. with Satans synagauge a must read. get the latest expanded version

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Robert W.

Interesting Perspectives

June 26, 2013

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This book includes perspectives of Hitler from the lives of various German citizens and provides some of the most insightful explanations to better understand how Germany allowed a madman to come into power.
5 stars: excellent read for anybody... especially history buffs.

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July 6, 2014

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no problems

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Nicholas J Lunardini

Great buy and process

November 29, 2013

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Very good read and smooth process overall it was very helpful for my paper. I would definitely recommend buying a book through Amazon.

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winstonugget

Excellent and Important

October 26, 2013

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

An important book in this day and times to read. I recommend this book to many people because it was written pre-WWII, so it is more truthful than anything written after 1945.

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Most recent customer reviews

KidsnTeachin

Five Stars

Please with item. Delivery was as stated. Would buy from this seller again. A++++

Published on March 25, 2016

K. Policy

A great tool for peace

One of the most important books I have ever read. I lived in Manhattan on 9/11 and afterwards took a class on social movements.Read more

Published on March 20, 2015

Phyllis Antebi Ph.D

Etiology of a Mass Movement

You've heard that joke before, "Why did the chicken cross the street?" The silly answer, "To get to the other side". Here's another one. "Why did Hitler come to power?"Read more

Published on April 11, 2013

Leslie

fantastic book

This book is an excellent read. Very interesting, given the time it was written. Theodore does a great job analyzing his data and communicating it to the reader.

Published on September 19, 2010

Chilling View on Mass Movements

I read this book 15 years ago and I still can't forget it. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the foundations of the Nazi party, mass movements, propaganda, cults, etc.Read more

Published on February 9, 2009

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