Life in Nazi Germany

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  • Created by: RiRi-**
  • Created on: 28-04-17 14:39

What was it like to live in Nazi Germany?

Young people in Nazi Germany

-Hitler aimed to control every aspect of Germany including people’s daily lives and if you were a teen Aryan you would’ve likely been a strong supporter of his

-School

o   Nazis reorganised the school curriculum to earn loyalty: you would’ve learnt about the history of Germany, how Germany was stabbed in the back by politicians which is how they lost the war, how Jews squeezing profits out of honest Germans caused the economic problems of the 1920s

o   As a senior pupil history studies assured you loyalty to Hitler was right and good, biology informed you of your superior Aryan intelligence and strength in comparison to the Untermenschen or sub-human Jews and Eastern European Slavs and in maths propaganda was often snuck into questions

o   Girls subjects included German, Geography, History, Race studies and Ideology, Domestic Science, maths, Eugenics (how to choose the right husband etc.) and Sex Education

-Hitler Youth

o   As a member of the Hitler Youth or German Maidens marches took place in exciting parades with loud bands, you would likely be physically fit and all leisure time was devoted to Hitler and the Nazis

o   You would probably be a strong cross country runner, confident at reading maps, comfortable camping outdoors and if you were a boy you could clean a rifle and keep it in good condition

-Home

o   Children often felt alienated or estranged from their parents as they weren’t as loyally devoted to the regime because whilst they expect family to be first priority Hitler Youth states it is Adolf Hitler

o   Many didn’t understand why parents grumbled about Nazi regulation of working places or why they found it strange Nazi inspectors checked up on teachers

o   They were also attracted to the Nazi Youth Movement by the leisure opportunities offered as there was little alternative as other organisations had been absorbed or made illegal

o   Even so only half of German boys were members in 1933 and only 15% of girls

Women in Nazi Germany

-All the Nazi leaders were men and it was a male-dominated organisation as Hitler had a traditionalist view of the role of the German woman as wife and mother

-Many women agreed with him particularly in rural areas and small towns

-There also much resentment towards working women in the early 1930s since they were viewed as stealing the men’s jobs therefore there was much pressure on them to conform to the ‘traditional balance’ between gender

-Hitler tempted financial incentives for married couples to have at least four children after the birth rate began to fall and for eight children women were awarded a gold cross and a privileged seat at Nazi meetings

-Posters, radio broadcasts and newsreels celebrated the idea of motherhood and homebuilding and the German Maiden’s League and school reinforced this focusing on a combination of good physical health and housekeeping skills

-The birth rate did increase from 15/1000 in

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