NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
During the Depression, Germans were overcome with strife and filled with the need for change. They were eager to be led and desperately wanted positive direction for Germany. The conditions in Germany were perfect for Hitlers ideology to be planted and grow in the minds and lives of Germans. In some way or another the Nazi ideology permeated in aspects of everyday life, family relationships, social relationships, and economic circumstances in German village communities. In order to understand the extent of the Nazis influence in village communities, you have to first understand the circumstances present in Germany before the Nazi integration. Traditionally, villages in Germany relied on agriculture as their main source of income.
As the population in the villages continued to grow and economic circumstances were declining, many Germans had no choice but to seek another source of income for their household. Many men went to urban areas to find work during the industrialization. The women and children stayed in the village and became responsible for not only the household, but also the land. This one thing paved the way for the transformation from the traditional way of life.
The instability created from this was present in many aspects of the German village community. Family life was very much changed by the men going to work in urban areas. The roles of every member of the family were different. The traditional German family had the women and girls taking care of the household and the boys and men were responsible for the land. The men were the "breadwinners" of the family, while the women had no roles with any responsibility. When the men went to the cities, the women became responsible for the household and the land also.
The women now became an integral part of family survival. The social structure in Germany had been the same way for years and years. The elite were deeply entrenched in their position in society. Land ownership was the deciding factor in social status - the elite having the most land. The elite would hire people with less land to tend to theirs. Many men in the village depended on the elite for part of their income.
Once the men went to work in the urban areas, the elite began to feel threatened. Their status had never been threatened before, and when they began losing their men to industry, they didnt know what to do. The village began to organize activities to keep the people happy. With the elite feeling pressure to maintain their status, and poor feeling pressure to merely survive, there was constant tension between villagers. The social activities succeeded in keeping the tension down on the surface, but underneath, deep rifts were forming between the social classes.
Economics were also a rocky spot for the villagers. the traditional agricultural economy began to suffer when the men went to work for industry. The households in the village now only produced enough to feed the family. The men were bringing in the income for the family from industry.
In the last years of the Weimar Republic when the bottom fell out of industry, the men had no choice but to go back to the village and once again depend solely on agriculture for income. This back and forth was not good for any involved. The men were used to depending on agriculture, it had been bred into them, but the women and children had had a taste of something different. It wasnt so easy for them to go back to their old ways.
The unstable economy had also struck a chord that would have a hand in the transformation of everyday life in German villages. All of this unrest in German village societies paved the way for Nazi integration. Everyone was eager for change. Things were happening that were turning everything they had known for so long completely upside down. When the rifts between social classes began to form in the villages, branches of Social Democrats (SPD) and Communists (KPD) were created. The existing clubs in the village split into socialist and nationalistic groups.
The working class group make up the SPD and KPD. The elite, who were the political power in the villages, made up the conservatives and nationalists. The working class made a kind of "counter part" to the elites. The elites maintained their power in the villages, but there were now noticeable splits within the community. This system of social hierarchy worked well for the older generation. This was all they knew.
The younger generation saw the impact that Nazism was having in other parts of Germany. The sons of the ruling elite just couldnt picture themselves automatically over for their fathers one day. The sons of the elite were the first to bring Nazism into a village like Korle. They wanted protection and real solutions tot he problems that were becoming more and more evident.
Their fathers were feeling pressure but were more or less stable in their positions in the community for the time being. The sons were the ones who could see a real threat for their future. The Nazis had a very activist stance and these German boys saw the Nazi ideology as a possible solution to three of their main worries: "the survival of their generation as independent farmers, the preservation of their political stance, and the suppression of their enemies (the Jews and the working class). (Bessel, p. 20) The Nazi party started out slowly in Korle. They eventually began gaining seats on the council.
The Nazis began to take control of the village by force. They removed the mayor, banned Social Democrats, Communists, and recreational clubs having to do with the left. Up until this point, all of the law enforcement had been local, but now the Nazis brought in storm troopers from other villages. The villagers of Korle didnt like this at all. The Nazis continued to expand social relationships for citizens in Korle. The villagers began to get very upset and surprisingly, their reaction was not directed at the Nazis, but at the newcomers to the village.
One reason why the people were reluctant to openly defy the Nazis was because of the promises the Nazis had made about improving the economy. The Nazis were pretty successful in convincing the villagers that they were going to fix their economic troubles. They were going to increase employment and decrease poverty. Many people in the village were opposed to the Nazi power, but kept quiet, part out of fear, but also out of hope for an improved economy. The changes in the household kept on coming. Women and children had a much bigger role than ever before.
The Nazis created clubs for women, b...
Free research essays on topics related to: source of income, urban areas, nazi ideology, social democrats, women and children
Research essay sample on Women And Children Source Of Income
