Women in Nazi Society

by Jill Stephenson

This fascinating book examines the position of women under the Nazis. The National Socialist movement was essentially male-dominated, with a fixed conception of the role women should play in society; while man was the warrior and breadwinner, woman was to be the homemaker and childbearer. The Nazi obsession with questions of race led to their insisting that women should be encouraged by every means to bear children for Germany, since Germany’s declining birth rate in the 1920s was in stark contrast with the prolific rates among the 'inferior' peoples of eastern Europe, who were seen by the Nazis as Germany’s foes. Thus, women were to be relieved of the need to enter paid employment after marriage, while higher education, which could lead to ambitions for a professional career, was to be closed to girls, or, at best, available to an exceptional few. All Nazi policies concerning women ultimately stemmed from the Party’s view that the German birth rate must be dramatically raised.

Genres: History, Germany

234 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1975

Reviews

[Jerra Runnels · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book as part of a historiography of women and Nazi Germany and eugenics and sterilization. It was the first book I looked at in my historiography, and provided me with a starting point of looking at the continuity of population policies from Weimar Republic to Nazi Germany. She was the only historian I read that stopped her discussions at 1939, stating the Second World War was such an “abnormal” time in history she did not want to include that time. Thankfully historians after her have all looked through 1945, as it is hard to fully look at the sterilization without including the horrendous practices committed on Jewish women. I am glad I included this work in my paper. It was interesting to read Stephenson’s 2001 work and compare the two.