Category: Mein Kampf

Hitler’s views at first seemed like they were consistent and then suddenly switched up into a totally different viewpoint. 

There were so many instances where he was so close to becoming a socialist or even a communist because of his experiences with being poor and struggling to find a job.There were also moments where he would notice the extreme wealth disparities in Vienna. He also noticed no matter how good of a skilled worker you were, there was still a chance for you to fall to rock bottom and fall back into poverty. This would have been the driving force if his hatred for Jewish people wasn’t to the extreme and reinforced by society. Considering how many people today see his views as extreme it was surprising to see how he thought the terms: seizing the means of production and wage theft were too extreme for him. At first he tried to stay away from politics and had centrist ideas. Slowly became more and more reactionary due to him being able to be easily influenced by these ideals. 

Around page 37, he describes arguing with his construction colleagues about what his stances were. In the footnotes, they also mention how he most likely wasn’t working in construction to begin with. He was talking about how their ideas were too radical when mentioning that they need to seize the means of production. The only thing that they did was talk about how the structures put in place, the ones that he already had a personal gripe with, into terms of how to solve some of those issues. 

He also says how he is against hierarchies (class ones) because of how differently they were treated. Then he decides it is better to create a class system involving how pure of German he thought they were.

One of the first things I noticed while reading chapter 6 was how similar the points of spreading propaganda were to how to pick a topic for a paper. The main point being how the topic needs to be specific enough to be unique but have a broad application. This makes the message memorable but in Hitler’s point, it slowly turns into insanity and relies on the people being in a vulnerable state. For both points to work, they need to reflect back on the original message.

Another thing that was surprising to me was how “leftist” his ideas sounded at first. He would dictate his experiences with poverty and notice the extreme wealth disparities in Vienna. The problem started the moment he decided not everyone should be included in his better society for Germany. Regardless of whether he was implementing leftist ideals, if it doesn’t include everyone, then the movement isn’t leftist.

In the introduction of the book, around page xxxiv, he lists 4 ways of dealing with the increment of the German population: abolish birth control, internal colonisation, acquisition of new territory, and expanding industry and commerce to buy food from abroad. This sentence looked like something I could expand on but with the phrasing and the wording, it was hard for me to understand.

One of the phrases I did understand was a quote from page 29, “Let us not try to condone this by saying that it is no better in other countries.” This sounds like a rebuttal to a common phrase said in the US, “If you don’t like it here then why don’t you leave?” Accepting the bare minimum from what a government should be doing isn’t gonna do it anymore. Critiquing systems put into place to oppress minorities should be expected and not seen as treacherous to want to find ways to improve the conditions of everyone.

Chapter 18 –> Part Two: 6: The Struggle of the Early Period – the Significance of the Spoken Word

• The Party’s 1^st great meeting is held in the Festsaal of the Hofbrauhaus on February 24, 1920. (mass meeting held weekly) 
  • One big view of the movement are Hitlers’ views that the World War I peace treaty is basically an attack on Germany
  • Unified opposition always challenging the same few points
  • Movement besieged by a propaganda campaign against it… 2 years later Hitler is a master of using this against his opposition and using it to control his followers
    • Destructive work of the Marxists and opposition’s propaganda deprived the people of ‘any common sense’
    • NSDAP should not become a constable of public opinion but should dominate it (not a servant of the masses but their master)
    • Human cowardice leads to the justification
    • International world Jew slowly strangles us
    • Men lie that their cowardice and fear of the popular sentiment did not make them join the Jewish rule
    • “strike the weapon of reply out of the enemy’s hand”
    • People who came to oppose but with otherwise honest hearts were won over when the doubts imprinted on memories and what was taught were disposed
    • After his 1^st speech, Hitler changed his method in order to win more people over
    • Met with hostile eyes at first, then 3 hours later had the masses ready to fight with wrath (he taught them the ‘truth’)
    • Lazy people kept their original opinions

Chapter 17 –> Part Two: 5: Philosophy and Organization

• Hitlers’ outlines his major points in his folkish state
  • It is important how the state is created
  • ‘present’ political powers cannot be expected to implement the correct programs and policies
  • If the ‘present’ state of government continues, society and the political structure will be taken over by Jews
  • In order to bring change, a new force (aka Hitler) must eliminate the existing Jewish power
  • 1^st part of the ‘battle’ is the eradication of existing state of affairs (effect must be negative because there is no such thing as constructive work)
  • Criticism is always negative, not constructive
  • Years and years of criticism must tear down the existing state of affairs (Marxism cannot exist without representing the old way of thought)
  • An existing condition is not eliminated by arguing for a future condition (ex: Christianity could not just build its own alters but had to destroy the pagan/heathen alters first)
  • Coercion is only broken by coercion, fear by fear… then a new of affairs can be constructively created
  • The fight for a new state requires determined fighters (victory only if the most courageous ideas/people to fight)
  • Philosophy is the declaration of war against existing order/existing view of life
  • The fighter do not need a full insight to what they are fighting for (just the leaders) … instead just the few essential fundamental ideas be burned inextinguishably into them – convinced of the total victory of the movement
  • The fighters are not involved with decision making but are trained in a rigid discipline and fanatical faith… give their lives for it
  • Ana army of all generals (informed individuals) is as useless as a political movement
  • Nature of organization – “a broad mass, with a more emotional attitude, serves a high intellectual leadership” (200 equal intellectual ability is harder to discipline than 190 intellectually less capable and 10 higher intellectuals)
  • **Strength of a political party lies not in the highest intellect but in the disciplined obedient followers**

Hitler many states the same ideas over and over and over again just restated in different ways. Every few sentences, he throws in a snarky comment about the Jewish people.

*Since Mein Kampf is so long the class decided each person was to read two chapters… mine are Chapter 17 and 18.

Mein kampf-chapter summary notes (with some personal bias sprinkled throughout)
Chapter 5
Hitler opens the chapter discussing some sort of metaphorical take on shopkeepers and sarcastically comments on how Jews ‘would have to sacrifice themselves to be in the owners of the shops by their own admission never make any money but always pay and besides speak the most languages.’
He’s also very anti-piece and feels that a lot of the previous failures of his government was because they try to maintain peace. He follows the Boer war with eager anticipation and sides with the Japanese in the Russo-Japanese war. He discusses the Balkan war a little bit, and then delves into a warranty description about the effect of the war on Europe. He hears about the murder of Archduke Francis Ferdinand and worries that German students were the murderer’s. Then Germany falls into World War I, Serbia attacks Austria ( the murdered archduke)
Living in Vienna made him more driven an anti-somatic. Hitler describes that he feels as though Germany was fighting for its existence and glorifies war throughout the pages. He joined the Bavarian regiment feeling as though it began the greatest and most unforgettable time of his earthly existence.
Hitler sent to Flanders, describes the experience of being a soldier in great philosophical detail, and they encounter gun fire. Hitler describes the soldiers is very honorable and more valuable than politicians and soon came to hate politicians. He had grievances with the press which criticized the celebration of German victories, he felt that the law had failed him, and feels as though the press, by criticizing excessive Pro war antics diminish the spirit of the soldiers and those wounding their ability to fight to the best abilities. He takes a small stab at collegiates,
Hitler feels as though any violence which does not spraying from a firm spiritual base will be wavering in uncertain. And discusses the spiritual basis for violence for about four more pages.

Chapter 6

Hitler becomes interested in propaganda when he begins to study politics, something that is arguably hypocritical seeing as how he denounces politicians and the political propaganda put forth by the press during the wars he lived through. He acknowledges in his own twisted Hitler-y way that the Socialist-Marxist organizations are experts in the use of propaganda. The correct use of propaganda can be very useful in methods of persuasion when it comes to convincing millions of people that the downfall of their country is directly caused by one unaffiliated (and irrelevant in terms of the downfall) race, which was the Jews. During the war he feels that Germany’s enemies are good at using propaganda but Germany does not engage in the process, another criticism against the governmental regulations (the first being their application of peace in times when war is seen as necessary or effective). The war is basically a means of struggle for the survival of the German people, which can also be said to be arguably false. The struggle he implies Germany is enduring is virtually non-existent to the extent in which he applies it.

Propaganda, however is a way to achieve this (nonexistent) goal. When survival is the issue, then any means should be used to achieve the goal. For example:
The American and English use propaganda to portray the Germans as barbarians. This prepares, or mentally brainwashes (by appealing to ignorance) the soldiers and public for war and for defeats in battle and anything that happens because they expect it of Barbarians.