Volksgemeinschaft Flashcards
(14 cards)
What was the Volksgemeinschaft
A central element in Nazi thinking. Essentially the Volksgemeinschaft was a new German society which
rejected old religions, ideologies and class divisions, instead forming a united German identity based around ideas of
race, struggle and state leadership.
How was the volksgemeinschaft racist
The aim was the creation of the ‘Volk’, a nation or people made up of the most superior of the human races. This concept was derived from a corruption of Darwinian, and relied on ‘Social Darwinism’, the idea that humanity was composed of different races, and these competed with one another for dominance: only the best race would lead after a survival of the fittest.
What was the Herrenvolk
The Nazis considered themselves the master race, pure aryans and all other races were inferior
How did the Volksgemeinschaft deal with competing ideologies
Rival ideas like democracy, liberalism or - especialy repugnant ot the Nazis - communism was rejected, and many of their leaders arrested and imprisoned.
What was the Volksgemeinschaft’s view on Blood and Soil
Everyone in the Volk was to work together for the common good, but to do it in accordance with mythical German values which portrayed the classic noble German as a land working peasant giving the state their blood and their toil.
German Men in Volksgemeinschaft
Split into the farmer, the worker, and the soldier
The farmer
Based on a romantic or idealistic interpretation of German history.
Everyone in the Volk was to work together for the common good, but to do it in accordance with mythical German values which portrayed the classic noble German as aland working peasant giving the state their blood and their toil.
The worker
The working class were tolerated, as Hitler recognised their important role in the German economy. However many of their rights were removed.
- Trade unions were banned
- German Labour Front removed the ability to strike and restricted wages.
- Workers began working 49 hour weeks
The soldier
The protector of the German Reich and the Volksgemeinschaft
The example of obedience and loyalty
Based on traditional tales of the heroic German soldier
The Role of women in Volksgemeinschaft
Role of woman was confined to family life and motherhood. Between 1933 and 1935 800,000 married women returned to the home.
The Role of youth in Volksgemeinschaft
The longevity of the Third Reich was dependent on the youth’s commitment to the new Germany and the Nazi regime. The aim of the Nazi Party was to eliminate all other influences (including parents, church, foreign entertainment, and friends) on children to confirm their allegiance to Nazism.
What were the systems set up for the youth
Boys: Pimpfen, Young German Boys, Hitler Youth
Girls: Jung Madel, Bund Deutsche Madel, Faith and Beauty
Facts and figures on youth in Volksgemeinschaft
December 1936 - Membership to Hitler Youth for boys aged 14-18 years is compulsory
By 1935 1.5 million girls were in the LGM
Education for youth in Volksgemeinschaft
Education had to be controlled to reflect traditional German values and serves the purposes of the nation. The Nazi’s opposed intellectual thought and inquiry and only taught subjects that were relevant to boys and girls expected roles. A new subject “The Science of the Races’ was introduced, and religious education abolished. Mein Kampf became a set text book to study.
