Despite all the thousands of studies of the Holocaust and the rise of Nazi Germany; we still have no satisfactory explanation of why this tragedy occurred in one of the most "civilized" of Western nations. John Weiss's Ideology of Death is the first book to explore the unique nature of German history; showing how it rejected the liberal ideals of the Enlightenment; and to trace the culture of racism and anti-Semitism among powerful elites and ordinary Germans over a long period of German history. In a stunningly lucid narrative; Weiss describes exactly how and why Christian anti-Semitism; in its unique form among German Protestants and Austrian Catholics; reinforced modern secular racism to create an explosive mix. Using the latest research; he details how the Nazis; building on traditional German anti-Semitism; were able to adjust it so as to appeal to a wide variety of social groups–crucial to their electoral success. And he explains the specific complicities of various German groups and institutions in the Holocaust; and why they voluntarily cooperated with the Nazis. In its clarity and compelling argument; Ideology of Death is certain to be one of the most important books for many years to come on the reasons behind the Holocaust.
#5587703 in Books 1999-03Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 .50 x 6.01 x 9.02l; #File Name: 1564742806176 pages
Review
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful. This book turns scholarly research into living stories.By pennyhazzThis book humanized history by relating the stories of Natalie Rothstein's emigrant ancestors; and her parents; to events in Europe and the U.S. over the past hundred years. The author has turned scholarly research into living; breathing stories. It was fascinating to me; a non-Jew; to see how the succeeding generations of American Jews yearn to know and appreciate those who have gone before. I have often observed something similar in Hawaii; where I live now. Like Rothstein; people who are three and four generations away from the Orient often return to their ancestral villages in China; Japan; the Philippines and Korea for visits at least once. I felt the same way when I finally got to England.The book takes on a more immediate tone when we reach Rothstein's own era. Through her eyes; we experience the Thirties; Forties and Fifties. She reminds us of famous Jews in every walk of life.Most interesting to me were the years she and her Army captain husband spent in rural Germany with their three children. He was a doctor at an Army base. What mixed emotions they felt as Americans and Jews in the country so recently dominated by Hitler and his Nazis! She's a wonderful writer; observant and thoughtful. We get the viewpoint of a well-rounded modern American woman; refreshing in these days of trashy ghost-written bimbo biographies.An American Family reminded me somewhat of Barbara Tuchman's books (Guns of August and Night of the Generals) in that it fleshes out history and takes you there where and when it was happening.
