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Adolf Hitler. Legende - Mythos - Wirklichkeit.
Excellent Book
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1971
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 23, 2016
Одна из немногих - может быть даже единственная в этом смысле - книга, которая полностью соответствует описанию: "рассматривать такую фигуру как Гитлер без гнева и пристрастия нам приходится, чтобы проследить путь тех потенциальных гитлеров, которые вовсе не похожи на чертей, а спокойно прокладывают путь к власти". Очень важный труд, Мазер в нем справился с главной задачей (и этим практически закрыл тему биографии Гитлера, дальше - у последующих авторов - пошло переливание из пустого в порожнее): показать Гитлера как человека (даже больше, чем политика), а не просто демона во плоти или наоборот - спасителя Германии.
August 5, 2022
Начавшаяся в феврале война в Украине и множество сравнений Путина с главным злодеем XX века, побудили меня ознакомиться с этой книгой. Кажется, наиболее интересное в подобных биографиях - проследить путь, уловить момент, когда небесталанный и крайне амбициозный молодой человек превращается в чудовище, которым пугали и еще долгое время, наверное, будут пугать людей. Парадокс персонажей, подобных Гитлеру или Сталину в том, что их знают все, не зная о них практически ничего. После смерти они становятся мифом, который полностью заслоняет собой человека.
Именно такую, человеческую сторону Гитлера в первую очередь раскрывает Вернер Мазер. Его семья, окружение, увлечения, влюбленности, убеждения, словом всё то, что постепенно формирует нас как личность и приводит порой туда, где мы совсем не рассчитывали оказаться.
Цепочка роковых случайностей превращает нервного, упрямого подростка, который так и не поступил в Венскую академию искусств, сначала в солдата Первой мировой, потом в политического агитатора, лидера маргинальной партии, узника Ландсберга, а затем в единоличного властителя Германии, которому покорилась большая часть европейского континента.
Сложилось бы всё иначе, если бы в 1907 году Гитлера все-таки приняли в Академию? Для юноши, пожалуй, да, а вот Европе, видимо, все равно довелось бы пройти сквозь огонь очередной мировой войны.
Ведь основными идеологиями того времени, которые активно боролись за умы граждан, были фашизм и коммунизм. Верования, не отличающиеся особым тактом и миролюбием.
Концентрация ненависти, недоверия, жажды реванша и новых завоеваний на континенте была настолько высокой, что Гитлер скорее был не её крестным отцом, а наиболее ярким и вульгарным представителем. Словом, лобового столкновения, видимо, было не избежать, но вот шесть миллионов восточных евреев могли бы остаться живы.
Именно такую, человеческую сторону Гитлера в первую очередь раскрывает Вернер Мазер. Его семья, окружение, увлечения, влюбленности, убеждения, словом всё то, что постепенно формирует нас как личность и приводит порой туда, где мы совсем не рассчитывали оказаться.
Цепочка роковых случайностей превращает нервного, упрямого подростка, который так и не поступил в Венскую академию искусств, сначала в солдата Первой мировой, потом в политического агитатора, лидера маргинальной партии, узника Ландсберга, а затем в единоличного властителя Германии, которому покорилась большая часть европейского континента.
Сложилось бы всё иначе, если бы в 1907 году Гитлера все-таки приняли в Академию? Для юноши, пожалуй, да, а вот Европе, видимо, все равно довелось бы пройти сквозь огонь очередной мировой войны.
Ведь основными идеологиями того времени, которые активно боролись за умы граждан, были фашизм и коммунизм. Верования, не отличающиеся особым тактом и миролюбием.
Концентрация ненависти, недоверия, жажды реванша и новых завоеваний на континенте была настолько высокой, что Гитлер скорее был не её крестным отцом, а наиболее ярким и вульгарным представителем. Словом, лобового столкновения, видимо, было не избежать, но вот шесть миллионов восточных евреев могли бы остаться живы.
January 19, 2023
Може би донякъде поостаряла биография на Хитлер, но много по-неутрална от повечето, които съм чел. И за разлика от конкурентите си не притежава дразнещата характеристика да преразказва успоредно цялата история на Третия райх в детайли. Мазер не представя хронологичен разказ на живота на Хитлер, а по-скоро акцентира върху някои особени черти на неговата личност (връзката му с изкуството, отношенията му към жените, общият му духовен мироглед, политическите му метаморфози и способностите му на военен и стратег). В края на книгата има и две интересни приложения - първото разглежда въпроса за предполагаемия син на Хитлер, заченат (уж) на фронта по време на ПСВ, а второто - представя запазените страници от дневника на Ева Браун, воден през 1935 г. Недостатък на книгата е липсата на достатъчно научен апарат, или иначе казано - повечето цитати са без съответни препратки към източниците. Нямам идея дали просто българското издание си е спестило превода им или в немското също липсват. Трябва да се има предвид и че българското издание е съкратено (с разрешение на автора), както пише в титулната страница на книгата.
April 16, 2021
Although this book is now over 40 years old, it's still worth reading. At the time it added important new information about Hitler to the public record, which we can attribute to Maser's dogged research. In some ways the research and thinking about the life of Hitler has moved on since this book was written, but there is still much in Maser's writing that is useful to the scholar of the period.
This book is a biography, but more than that, it is an attempt to gain some insights into Hitler's character and the influences that formed him. Maser also made a concerted attempt to query many of the books and articles written about Hitler's early life, especially those written by people who knew him back then, who often had an axe to grind.
Maser begins his work with a detailed look at Hitler's family tree, which seems to conclusively show that Hitler was from peasant stock and didn't, as some sources state, have any Jewish ancestors. It seems that from an early age Hitler had firm opinions, and his marks at school reflected whether he thought that particular subject "interesting". One of his biggest influences at that time was a history teacher who had very strong Pan-German ideas.
His "wandering years" in Vienna are also investigated closely. although he did stay for a time in a men's rooming-house, he was far from destitute - his paintings earned him enough money to allow him to sign over his portion of the orphans pension to his sister. It also seems clear that he was engaging in at least some dealings with Jews on a personal basis during this time.
He moved to Munich partly to avoid conscription into the Austro-Hungarian army, as by this time he was convinced that the Empire was a malignant entity and that Germans had no business in defending it. By the outbreak of WWI he was also a convinced anti-semite. While his long standing German nationalism pre-disposed Hitler to such views, the reason that this developed into such a radical exterminatory obsession is still shrouded in mystery that Maser does little to unravel.
Hitler spent much of his time during WWI at the front, where he became a runner for his regiment, which was a dangerous task - Hitler won the Iron Cross first and second class in recognition of his bravery. It seems that the beginnings of Hitler's demagoguery occurred in the trenches, where he discovered his gift for public speaking.
Both before and during the War Hitler was an avid reader when he got the chance. Like many poorly educated (and some more educated) men he tended to read to confirm his own thoughts, rather than to challenge them: this flaw in his nature became more and more noticeable during his life, to the point that he couldn't even listen to contradictory views.
Maser delved deeply into Hitler's medical record, and comes to the conclusion that he was not a well man. He had a bad attack of influenza in 1941, and it seems he was never the same since that time. The medicaments given to him by his doctor included several stimulants and a concoction containing strychnine. Maser posits that the combination of these drugs and potions affected Hitler's thought processes, and could in fact be to blame for many of his more outrageous statements. Maser of course is not a doctor, and to this reader he does seem to push this theory to its outer limits. However, Maser does show more convincingly that, from the late 1930s, Hitler was convinced that he didn't have much longer to live, and this feeling led him to move his timetable forward, and to attack Russia before he had defeated England.
In fact Hitler struggled with his war on England - it didn't fit his Continental-based strategy, and Maser shows throughout this book that Hitler very rarely changed his ideas, or mind. He had prepared for war against Russia and France for many years in his mind, but had not done so when it came to England, and couldn't develop the mindset to do so. Hitler could never grasp that countries may act on principal, and so assumed that England would pull out of the war when France was defeated and leave the Continent to Hitler.
This rigidity in Hitler led to huge losses in the German armed forces, as he almost always categorically refused to allow retreat, even when it made sense to do so. Maser makes the point that while Hitler was a grand strategist, as a tactical commander he was flawed, partially because he could never let tactics diverge for a moment from his grander visions, and partly owing to his inability to make decisions on a day-to-day or hour-to-hour basis, an essential requirement for a tactical commander.
The supreme narcissist, Hitler brought the German people down with him into hell, and couldn't allow - until the last moments - himself to be shown to be wrong. That so many followed him for so long is a tragedy on a colossal scale.
Maser's book is intriguing, and an important part of the building of knowledge about Hitler, but has been surpassed by more recent texts.
Check out my other reviews at http://aviewoverthebell.blogspot.com.au/
This book is a biography, but more than that, it is an attempt to gain some insights into Hitler's character and the influences that formed him. Maser also made a concerted attempt to query many of the books and articles written about Hitler's early life, especially those written by people who knew him back then, who often had an axe to grind.
Maser begins his work with a detailed look at Hitler's family tree, which seems to conclusively show that Hitler was from peasant stock and didn't, as some sources state, have any Jewish ancestors. It seems that from an early age Hitler had firm opinions, and his marks at school reflected whether he thought that particular subject "interesting". One of his biggest influences at that time was a history teacher who had very strong Pan-German ideas.
His "wandering years" in Vienna are also investigated closely. although he did stay for a time in a men's rooming-house, he was far from destitute - his paintings earned him enough money to allow him to sign over his portion of the orphans pension to his sister. It also seems clear that he was engaging in at least some dealings with Jews on a personal basis during this time.
He moved to Munich partly to avoid conscription into the Austro-Hungarian army, as by this time he was convinced that the Empire was a malignant entity and that Germans had no business in defending it. By the outbreak of WWI he was also a convinced anti-semite. While his long standing German nationalism pre-disposed Hitler to such views, the reason that this developed into such a radical exterminatory obsession is still shrouded in mystery that Maser does little to unravel.
Hitler spent much of his time during WWI at the front, where he became a runner for his regiment, which was a dangerous task - Hitler won the Iron Cross first and second class in recognition of his bravery. It seems that the beginnings of Hitler's demagoguery occurred in the trenches, where he discovered his gift for public speaking.
Both before and during the War Hitler was an avid reader when he got the chance. Like many poorly educated (and some more educated) men he tended to read to confirm his own thoughts, rather than to challenge them: this flaw in his nature became more and more noticeable during his life, to the point that he couldn't even listen to contradictory views.
Maser delved deeply into Hitler's medical record, and comes to the conclusion that he was not a well man. He had a bad attack of influenza in 1941, and it seems he was never the same since that time. The medicaments given to him by his doctor included several stimulants and a concoction containing strychnine. Maser posits that the combination of these drugs and potions affected Hitler's thought processes, and could in fact be to blame for many of his more outrageous statements. Maser of course is not a doctor, and to this reader he does seem to push this theory to its outer limits. However, Maser does show more convincingly that, from the late 1930s, Hitler was convinced that he didn't have much longer to live, and this feeling led him to move his timetable forward, and to attack Russia before he had defeated England.
In fact Hitler struggled with his war on England - it didn't fit his Continental-based strategy, and Maser shows throughout this book that Hitler very rarely changed his ideas, or mind. He had prepared for war against Russia and France for many years in his mind, but had not done so when it came to England, and couldn't develop the mindset to do so. Hitler could never grasp that countries may act on principal, and so assumed that England would pull out of the war when France was defeated and leave the Continent to Hitler.
This rigidity in Hitler led to huge losses in the German armed forces, as he almost always categorically refused to allow retreat, even when it made sense to do so. Maser makes the point that while Hitler was a grand strategist, as a tactical commander he was flawed, partially because he could never let tactics diverge for a moment from his grander visions, and partly owing to his inability to make decisions on a day-to-day or hour-to-hour basis, an essential requirement for a tactical commander.
The supreme narcissist, Hitler brought the German people down with him into hell, and couldn't allow - until the last moments - himself to be shown to be wrong. That so many followed him for so long is a tragedy on a colossal scale.
Maser's book is intriguing, and an important part of the building of knowledge about Hitler, but has been surpassed by more recent texts.
Check out my other reviews at http://aviewoverthebell.blogspot.com.au/
August 22, 2019
Too many mistakes and false or misleading sources.
February 9, 2016
Пізнавальне чтиво.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews