The Logic of Evil: The Social Origins of the Nazi Party, 1925-1933

by William Brustein

Why did millions of apparently sane, rational Germans join the Nazi Party between 1925 and 1933? In this provocative book, William Brustein argues that the Nazi Party's emergence as the most popular political party in Germany was eminently logical―that it resulted largely from its success at fashioning economic programs that addressed the material needs of a wide range of German citizens.

Brustein has carefully analyzed a huge collection of pre-1933 Nazi Party membership data drawn from the official files at the Berlin Document Center. He argues that Nazi followers were more representative of German society as a whole―that they included more workers, more single women, and more Catholics―than most previous scholars have believed. Further, says Brustein, the patterns of membership reveal that people joined the Nazi Party not because of Hitler's irrational appeal or charisma or anti-Semitism, but because the party, through its shrewd and proactive program, offered more benefits to more people than did the other political parties in Weimar Germany. According to Brustein, Nazi supporters were no different from citizens anywhere who select a political party or candidate they believe will promote their economic interests. The roots of evil, he suggests, may be ordinary indeed.

Genres: History, Germany, Nonfiction

235 pages, Paperback

First published August 28, 1996

Reviews

[Katherine Addison · Rating 3 out of 5]

For better transparency, that subtitle should read "The Sociological Origins of the Nazi Party," because that's what Brustein is doing. He's analyzing the data provided by NSDAP member cards, and doing so in a very narrowly sociological framework. His thesis is that the support of ordinary Germans for the Nazi Party can be explained entirely by rational economic self-interest. No need to talk about Hitler the demagogue or the German tradition of anti-Semitism--it all comes down to the Nazis' proposed economic programs.

Don't get me wrong: Brustein's data are fascinating, and I think his work does help explain why the Nazis did better among certain social groups. But I don't buy his thesis that the rise of the NSDAP can be satisfactorily explained by people making well-informed, rational, economically-motivated decisions.

[Sophia Kut · Rating 4 out of 5]

very informative….

[Shannon Wyss · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book but dry and dense. Brustein analyzes why Germans joined the Nazi party before Hitler's appointment as Chancellor of the country. His surprising but very well supported conclusion: for most Germans, it wasn't anti-semitism but economic need that led them to become Nazis.

Unfortunately, his book assumes a much greater knowledge of Weimar Germany than i possess (i still have no idea what the Young and Dawes plans were, for instance, even after reading his entire book). And being completely quantitative, it tends to be on the dry end of things. I could have used a Weimar Germany 101 course before reading this book. And Brustein could have spiced up his analysis with qualitative data.

All in all, though, a good book. I'm glad i read it and have a deeper, more nuanced view, of pre-WWII Nazis.

[Alexandro Guillen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written not as literature but rather as an academic research paper. The author presents his thesis and does an good job of supporting his position as to what caused Germans to join the Nazi party and why.
This book has a very technical writing style as opposed to a the story telling literary style of "popular history".