The Great Depression and Rise to Nazism

The submissions for this assignment are posts in the assignment’s discussion.

The Great Depression lead to rise of Nazi-ism, resulting in Germanys economy as a country and women returning to work as people struggled for economic balance. The Great Depression was a big factor to desperate economic conditions in Germany which led in part to the rise of Hitler. (The Great Depression) As the war came between existing global trade relations, the United States became the main supplier of goods, including weapons and ammunition. Germany was left in great debt to the United States. Adolf Hitler became bitter about these things, as well as the perceived changes in sex roles and lack of traditional sex roles becoming the norm. Hitler promised to make Germany great again as it was before WW1 and didn’t believe his country should have to pay for its role in WW1. (Aftermath of World War I and the Rise of Nazism) There was a shortage of labor in the later 1930s, particularly once war broke out in September 1939. A conflict developed between the party and the men in charge of government, which was decided in favour of the women working in 1941, no doubt partly because women were reluctant to provide the labour which was badly needed. (Edinburgh Research Archive) Women were coming into the workforce in numbers and people longed for economic security.  Wartime and economic demands also pushed women into more non-traditional occupations and gave them an opportunity to show off their skills in typically mens jobs. They discussed what were appropriate jobs for women and began to lose the stereotype that women are the weaker more fragile sex by accepting women in every vocation. (Women in the Legislature)

Women in German Society, 1930-1940, Edinburgh Research Archive, https://era.ed.ac.uk/handle/1842/27463

Women in the Legislature – 1934-1953: After The Great Depression and Two World Wars, http://web.leg.wa.gov/WomenInTheLegislature/1934-1953.htm

Holocaust Encyclopedia, The Great Depression,  https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/the-great-depression

United States Holocaust Memorialism, Aftermath of World War I and the Rise of Nazism, https://www.ushmm.org/learn/holocaust/path-to-nazi-genocide/chapter-1/aftermath-of-world-war-i-and-the-rise-of-nazism-1918-1933

Ashleigh, it’s wonderful that you point out the struggle for power of the country, however I always had thought of it as important for the individuals in the country to have happiness, and with an economic depression, how can they? So in the economic sense, Germany being deeply indebted drove Hitler to want to gain power promising better economy if the society was pure. People were burning their money as firewood – and they had been saving it and working for it all their lives.

Fickle, maybe? Do you trust someone that murders and kills people and even with its military having been reduced due to bad credit from WW1 wanted to rise to own all of Europe? He empowered women to work because he couldn’t get enough people working even after the economy rose a little bit due to his changes. Everything he did was selfish even his open lies. 

Shelby, do you think it should be made less agreeable to impose reparation money on countries causing them to struggle unnecessarily? Not in any way do I expect you to side that the desperate Germany was right in how they let their desperation rise against the entire world in order to gain global power – but do you think this could have contributed? Even with their reduced military power they did tons of damage that will never be forgotten. I do think allowing the mood to be set so that it affected the happiness of the common people and their families stability due to aftermath of a war could cause them to think hey lets give that war another go. The rumor that Hitler put antidepressant fluoride in the drinking water is somehow secretly key that a lot of this was emotions, paranoia, upset.