Community: The Rise Of The Weimar Republic

Introduction A theme that is characterized in the phrase “good society” is “community”. As nations around the world expanded and grew, people and nations banded together creating communities (can also be noted as cities, urban living, towns, and such). With the growing nations, there also rose the need to facilitate or control the outcome of living. This concern posed a question: “What is a good society?” There are numerous marks that represent “good society”: rule of law, economic expansion, reciprocity, ethical standards, good citizenship, nationalism, justice, and so forth. It is noted that throughout history, people have attempted to create an improved lifestyle, fair living and a governmental system that protected and represented the

In the wake of WWI, Germans were feeling bitter and uncertain due to the war reparations they were forced to pay and the shifts in the government that rose out of the revolutions. In essence, the Germans “felt betrayed by the government they had helped put into power” (i.e. the Weimar Republic) (Week 7 Content, n.d., p. 15). During this period, Nazism, spearheaded by Adolf Hitler, slowly spread throughout the German nation (a political and economic ideology). This ideology encompassed both a totalitarian and nationalistic nature and further took root with the support of the National Socialist German Workers’ party (NAZI). The Weimar Republic thought that if they gave Hitler a position of leadership, the NAZI party would be “forced to appeal to a wider mass of people and tone down their racist, antidemocratic sentiments” (Week 7 Content, n.d., p. 15). Little did they know that this seat to power would both revolutionize the German nation and further electrify the view of

Consider this passage: “He suspended civil liberties. He called for new elections and the Nazi Party took the majority and gave Hitler dictatorial power for 4 years. He immediately outlawed all other parties… Freedom of speech, assembly and press were eliminated. A secret police force, the Gestapo, rooted out any opposition. Schools, professional associations and leisure organizations were forced to conform to Nazi directives… [and the NAZI] party encouraged large families and attempted to stop birth control, abortion and homosexuality in order to expand the German race” (Week 7 Content, n.d., p. 15). By removing the threat to his power and further securing his position in Germany, Hitler answered to nobody but