Essay, Research Paper: Adolf Hitler

Leadership is a position that many people strive for, and
spend a great deal of time working toward. Adolf Hitler
was one of the most influential people of all time.
Adolf Hitler rose to be one of the most successful leaders
in history, despite an insecure and unstable early life.
He did this through his ability to captivate crowds, his
strong personality, experiences with his father, his strong
character, and the extensive use of propaganda.

Emotions or feelings that a person has at a young
age can carry over to a person's adult life as well. Adolf
Hitler displayed a great deal of contempt and anger during
his reign over Germany. The first signs can be traced back
to when Hitler's father was still alive, before the age of
thirteen. Adolf held a great deal of contempt toward his
father because he did not support Hitler's dream of becoming
an artist. Hitler's father, Alois Hitler wanted Adolf to
follow his footsteps as a civil servant and he sent his son
to the technical high school where he failed in his first
year. Hitler later wrote:

I thought that once my father saw what little progress I was
making at the (technical school) he would let me devote myself
to the happiness I dreamed of. (Mein Kampf)

Hitler also admitted later that: " the thought of
slaving in an office made me ill....not to be master of my own time." (1998) This caused a bitter struggle between father and son which must have had some negative influences on Hitler's later life.

Personality traits are usually distinguished at a young age. Adolf Hitler was a leader even when he as little, managing to get people to like him. Joseph Keplinger said "We all liked him, both in the classroom and on the playground." (Seward 1989,31) During his boyhood, as in his adult life, Hitler had no use for authority except for his own. Teachers described him as extremely intelligent, yet his grades were average at best. He was regarded as "notoriously cantankerous, willful, arrogant, and irascible." (Seward 1989,31) He was a leader in the school yard games of war and cowboys and Indians. Anyone who would not obey him would be ordered out. This resembles his time as the Fuehrur where anyone who would not follow him was eliminated. Adolf Hitler always had the personality of a leader who only listened to himself and the values in which he believed.

One may be influenced by experiences an individual from very early in life. Adolf Hitler's first German influence may have come from the fact that his father worked for the Austrian customs and supported the Austrian government, and due to his contempt for his father, this may have encouraged Hitler to support Germany. Despite his Austrian citizenship he liked to say "heil," the standard German greeting, and sang the Austrian Imperial anthem. Adolf Hitler imagination was quickly affected by a history teacher, Dr. Leopold Potch who " . . . touched Hitler's imagination with exciting tales of the glory of German figures such as Bismark and Frederick The Great."(1998) Many Austrians near the German border expressed loyalty to the German Imperial House of Hollenzollern and it's Kaiser. Hitler's influences later helped to grow an obsession. This obsession carried with it a great deal of passion, which became clear when Hitler spoke.

The best tool to captivate a crowd and create a following is speech. Adolf Hitler spoke with a great deal of passion and rage that kept audiences intrigues with what he was saying.

Hitler shouted accusations against the Jews and cried out to the
Germans to form an all-powerful national state. His voice, torn
and hoarsened by mustard gas from WWI was a hypnotic one.
His speeches kindled the anger of rivals, especially the Communists (July 1995)

By early 1921, Adolf Hitler was becoming highly effective at speaking
in front of ever larger crowds. In February, Hitler spoke before a
crowd of nearly six thousand in Munich.....(1998)

When Hitler's Nazi party put into action a plan to over throw the democratic government, Hitler stormed into the hall and fired a pistol at the ceiling and yelled for quiet, stunning the crowd. The room was glued to every word that he said from then on. Hitler always found a way to make people listen, even if it meant lying to gain their attention.

The presentation of a strong and infallible character can convince people that a person is greater then they really are. Adolf Hitler believed, at least himself as the real saviour of the world, believing himself to be the greatest human of all time. Any move made by Hitler, he believed no matter what the issue, was the right one. His opinion of himself is obvious in statements like the following: "I do not play war. I do not allow the 'generals' to give me orders. The war is conducted by me. There will be only one time that will be truly auspicious, and I will wait for it with inflexible determination. And I will not pass by it." (Rausching, 1940. 16) Hitler often compared himself to Jesus, implying that Hitler himself was the new saviour of humans. He often said he would never marry because Germany was his only bride, the same way that Jesus never married because the Universe was his only bride. This was one way that Hitler made himself appear bigger than life. Another way he made himself appear larger than life was through the effective use of propaganda.

The use of propaganda can be an effective way to show the other side of a person or race. Hitler used propaganda to show the German's that the Jews were evil, and at the same time this made Hitler appear to be the greatest person in history. He had many pictures of him self printed with children to leave the impression that he was a caring father, one who cared for the people of Germany. The fact that Hitler was a vegetarian and never smoked or drank, was manipulated to the fullest. He used these to make people believe he didn't need willpower. The truth is he had nothing against these things as far as health was concerned. Hitler described it. "It is a matter of will. Once I make up my mind not to do a thing, I just don't do it. And once the decision is made, it is taken for always. Is that so wonderful?" (Langer, 1972.55) Germans were tricked into believing that Hitler was a very caring and generous person who stayed away from meat because he was so caring that he hated the idea of animals being slaughtered for human consumption. As far as the propaganda was concerned, he was a patient man who wanted to avoid the spill of blood wherever possible. It is possible through propaganda to appear to be greater and more important than who you really are.

No matter how great anyone claims to be, they always have some faults. In Hitler's case, his faults were his claims to greatness. The fact he was a vegetarian because, as he explained it, he didn't like blood being spilled to benefit humans. This is totally ridiculous considering he caused the death of millions of Jews because he believed Germany would benefit from being rid of the Jewish race. Most German citizens believed that Hitler was "perfect." Anyone that actually met him would tell you he was insecure, awkward, and very unsure if himself. Hitler said he would wait for an auspicious time and that he would wait with "inflexible determination" for the right time to attack. In reality he was a nervous wreck, whenever he was challenged or confronted with an unexpected problem, he panicked and often went into fits of rage; especially when offered input from generals. He was even known to cry when the slightest thing went wrong.

There is no doubt Hitler was an insane genius, who amassed a large following with his speaking ability, strong character appearance, and most of all his lies through propaganda. His crazy beliefs were mainly a result of an unstable youth that set him on his way to becoming a very powerful leader. Such a strong following he did create that some people still follow his preachings today, more than fifty years after his death.















Bibliography


Deighton,L(1979).Blitzgrieg.London:Jonathon Cape Corporation.

Overy,R., & Wheatcroft, A.(1989).The Road To War. New York:Randon House Inc.

Langer,W.C.(1972).The Mind Of Adolf Hitler.New York:Basic Books.

Rauschnig, H.(1940).Gespraeche mit Hitler.New York:Europa Verlag.

Seward,D.(1935).Napolean and Hitler A Comparative Biography.New York:Viking Penguin Inc.

(1998).The Rise Of Adolf Hitler[On-line].Available HTTP://www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/riseofhitler/index.htm
(Chapters 1 - 24)

Hitler, Adolf.(1998).In Comptons Interactive Encyclopedia[CD-ROM].Comptons.

Quite an interesting piece of writing. I am just working on a research paper for my History class and I have found this resource to be very useful. I will cite your site on my bibliography. Thanks!

Good article!

good writing about adolf hitler but what was his chrarcter/personality traits?

good writing about adolf hitler but what was his chrarcter/personality traits?

Hitler was a mean guy, a sadistic person obviously. He had a drive for power. He was nothing but a dictator and I just really think it was so unfortunate for so many people to believe his rhetorics.

Its not a bad essay, the referencing is just not up to par. If you can improve that the essay would appear better researched which in turn will validate it.