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Hitler Was A Powerful and Persuasive Leader
Germany was brought from its squalor and dirt-low economy of the 1920s into a towering world power in the 1930s by one man. For such a feat, that man had to have great persuasive abilities, strong opinions, and the nerve to stand behind them. That man, the man who brought Germany to its singular catastrophic achievement, was Adolf Hitler. Hitler was a powerful and persuasive leader.
One of Hitler’s most successful tactics of winning over the masses was through his speeches. Hitler was a master public speaker. Standing in front of an enormous audience -some Nazis, others not- Hitler would start to speak, soft but firm, and escalate in volume, accompanying his words with wild gestures. As a result, transfixed audiences drank in every word he said. Hitler was referred to as a charmer; in the movie, Albert Speer Inside the Third Reich , a young Albert Speer was swayed in his adamant non-Nazi beliefs by one of Hitler’s speeches. Individuals rejoiced when the Fuhrer pointed to them, singling them out from the thousands of their colleagues, entreating to them. With an avid belief in what he was saying and strong words, Hitler mesmerized the crowds. Main points were repeated again and again, with different innuendos each time: Life is horrid- Blame the Jews! The economy is nonexistent- Blame the Jews! The Jews are bringing us down- Kill all the Jews! By the time that Hitler finished speaking, many more had joined the Nazi party.
Hitler also used the Nazi’s powerful appearance to his advantage, spreading fearful obedience and awe. Soldiers and officers could always be seen in crisp, perfect uniforms, walking down the street, or as in the movie, saluting smartly from the top of a speeding car. Everywhere you looked, a huge banner, a flag, a medallion, an arm band, all bearing the swastika -the symbol of the Nazi party- could be seen, reminding you of where you were and who was in charge. Another main contributor to Hitler’s appearance were simply the sheer numbers of his supporters. All across Germany, power and support showed for Hitler and the Nazis, winning over the people or suppressing them through fear.
To unite all the German peoples, Hitler bombarded them with convincing and conniving propaganda. With repeated images and slogans, even the firmest neutral citizen found themselves thinking in-step with the Nazi values. To give a common enemy, Goebbels, the head of propaganda, blamed the Jews for all troubles. Books, plays and movies could only be put on the market if they had been approved by Goebbels’ fine-tooth comb. No non-Nazi ideas were allowed to circulate ad spread through the arts or news; of course, Jews were forbidden to create anything. In the movie, a book burning was held, reducing all ‘inappropriate’ books to ash in the public square -books donated by the cheering crowds! Also, the movie showed soldiers publically humiliating all who stood up for or were in any way related to Jews and preventing citizens’ entrance into a Jewish store. No jobs were to be held if not by a Nazi. Through propaganda, Hitler managed to cow, over-awe and convince an entire nation, just as he wished.
The German people were not particularly evil or pure; they merely let themselves be manipulated by Hitler. Adolf Hitler’s true genius was his extraordinary ability to convince ordinary people. Using his skills, Hitler warped an entire nation, twisted it into believing that Jews were the root of all evil, and finally, leading them in carrying out a genocide, an attempted annihilation of all Jews.
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