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Ο Χίτλερ, οι Γερμανοί και η «Τελική Λύση»
Μια βαθιά διορατική κοινωνική ιστορία της ανόδου του Χίτλερ στην εξουσία και των στάσεων που τήρησε ο γερμανικός λαός κατά τη διάρκεια της περιόδου του Τρίτου Ράιχ.
Βασισμένο σε τρεις και πλέον δεκαετίες εξαντλητικής ιστοριογραφικής έρευνας γύρω από τη ναζιστική Γερμανία, το βιβλίο του Kershaw συγκεντρώνει για πρώτη φορά τις σημαντικότερες πτυχές της έρευνας του διαπρεπούς Βρετανού ιστορικού για το Ολοκαύτωμα. Τα κεφάλαια είναι δομημένα σε τρεις ενότητες: ο Χίτλερ και η Τελική Λύση, η λαϊκή γνώμη και οι Εβραίοι στη ναζιστική Γερμανία, και η Τελική Λύση στην ιστοριογραφία και συνοδεύονται από μια εισαγωγή και έναν επίλογο για τη μοναδικότητα του ναζισμού.
Ο ιστορικός Ian Kershaw είναι θεμελιωτής της κοινωνικής ιστορίας του Τρίτου Ράιχ και σε όλη τη διάρκεια της σταδιοδρομίας του διεξήγε πρωτοποριακές έρευνες για τα κοινωνικά αίτια και τις επιπτώσεις της ναζιστικής πολιτικής. Με το έργο του έχει φέρει στο φως αμέτρητα στοιχεία ως προς τους τρόπους με τους οποίους οι διάφορες στάσεις που υιοθέτησε ο γερμανικός λαός διαμόρφωσαν ή δε διαμόρφωσαν τη ναζιστική πολιτική. Ο παρών τόμος προσφέρει μια σφαιρική, πολυεπίπεδη εικόνα τόσο της ολέθριας δυναμικής της ναζιστικής ηγεσίας όσο και της στάσης και συμπεριφοράς απλών Γερμανών ενόσω ο διωγμός των Εβραίων κλιμακωνόταν για να πάρει τη μορφή ολοσχερούς γενοκτονίας.
"Ο Ian Kershaw αποδεικνύει και πάλι τη μαεστρία του στην ερμηνεία της ιστορίας της ναζιστικής Γερμανίας και της χιτλερικής πολιτικής ειδικότερα σε σχέση με τους Εβραίους. Ένα ανάγνωσμα εκ των ων ουκ άνευ".
(Saul Friedlander, Καθηγητής Ιστορίας, UCLA)
"Τις τελευταίες τρεις δεκαετίες ο Ian Kershaw είναι ένας από τους πιο διορατικούς μελετητές της ναζιστικής Γερμανίας. Έχει συνεισφέρει πρωτοποριακές μελέτες για την κοινή γνώμη και τις λαϊκές στάσεις στο Τρίτο Ράιχ, καθώς και τη μνημειώδη του βιογραφία του Χίτλερ".
(Christopher R. Browning, Πανεπιστήμιο North Carolina)
Βασισμένο σε τρεις και πλέον δεκαετίες εξαντλητικής ιστοριογραφικής έρευνας γύρω από τη ναζιστική Γερμανία, το βιβλίο του Kershaw συγκεντρώνει για πρώτη φορά τις σημαντικότερες πτυχές της έρευνας του διαπρεπούς Βρετανού ιστορικού για το Ολοκαύτωμα. Τα κεφάλαια είναι δομημένα σε τρεις ενότητες: ο Χίτλερ και η Τελική Λύση, η λαϊκή γνώμη και οι Εβραίοι στη ναζιστική Γερμανία, και η Τελική Λύση στην ιστοριογραφία και συνοδεύονται από μια εισαγωγή και έναν επίλογο για τη μοναδικότητα του ναζισμού.
Ο ιστορικός Ian Kershaw είναι θεμελιωτής της κοινωνικής ιστορίας του Τρίτου Ράιχ και σε όλη τη διάρκεια της σταδιοδρομίας του διεξήγε πρωτοποριακές έρευνες για τα κοινωνικά αίτια και τις επιπτώσεις της ναζιστικής πολιτικής. Με το έργο του έχει φέρει στο φως αμέτρητα στοιχεία ως προς τους τρόπους με τους οποίους οι διάφορες στάσεις που υιοθέτησε ο γερμανικός λαός διαμόρφωσαν ή δε διαμόρφωσαν τη ναζιστική πολιτική. Ο παρών τόμος προσφέρει μια σφαιρική, πολυεπίπεδη εικόνα τόσο της ολέθριας δυναμικής της ναζιστικής ηγεσίας όσο και της στάσης και συμπεριφοράς απλών Γερμανών ενόσω ο διωγμός των Εβραίων κλιμακωνόταν για να πάρει τη μορφή ολοσχερούς γενοκτονίας.
"Ο Ian Kershaw αποδεικνύει και πάλι τη μαεστρία του στην ερμηνεία της ιστορίας της ναζιστικής Γερμανίας και της χιτλερικής πολιτικής ειδικότερα σε σχέση με τους Εβραίους. Ένα ανάγνωσμα εκ των ων ουκ άνευ".
(Saul Friedlander, Καθηγητής Ιστορίας, UCLA)
"Τις τελευταίες τρεις δεκαετίες ο Ian Kershaw είναι ένας από τους πιο διορατικούς μελετητές της ναζιστικής Γερμανίας. Έχει συνεισφέρει πρωτοποριακές μελέτες για την κοινή γνώμη και τις λαϊκές στάσεις στο Τρίτο Ράιχ, καθώς και τη μνημειώδη του βιογραφία του Χίτλερ".
(Christopher R. Browning, Πανεπιστήμιο North Carolina)
504 pages, Paperback
Published October 11, 2011
97 people are currently reading
1842 people want to read
About the author
Ian Kershaw
106 books1,078 followersIan Kershaw is a British historian, noted for his biographies of Adolf Hitler.
Ian Kershaw studied at Liverpool (BA) and Oxford (D. Phil). He was a lecturer first in medieval, then in modern, history at the University of Manchester. In 1983-4 he was Visiting Professor of Modern History at the Ruhr University in Bochum, West Germany. From 1987 to 1989 he was Professor of Modern History at the University of Nottingham, and since 1989 has been Professor of Modern History at Sheffield. He is a fellow of the British Academy, of the Royal Historical Society, of the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, and of the Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung in Bonn. He retired from academic life in the autumn semester of 2008.
Ian Kershaw studied at Liverpool (BA) and Oxford (D. Phil). He was a lecturer first in medieval, then in modern, history at the University of Manchester. In 1983-4 he was Visiting Professor of Modern History at the Ruhr University in Bochum, West Germany. From 1987 to 1989 he was Professor of Modern History at the University of Nottingham, and since 1989 has been Professor of Modern History at Sheffield. He is a fellow of the British Academy, of the Royal Historical Society, of the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, and of the Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung in Bonn. He retired from academic life in the autumn semester of 2008.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
March 28, 2018
In more than one way the intense scrutiny of Germany under Hitler is a search for things which aren’t there. As the Nazis intensified the pressure on Jews (sacking them all from public jobs, forcing them to wear the star of David, etc etc) was there any protest from the non-Jewish population? No, there really wasn’t. So, does that mean the Germans were profoundly anti-Semitic? No, not really, they just didn’t care about the Jews. The Jews weren’t on their radar. It was the Nazis who were obsessed with the Jews, not the vast German population who weren’t Nazis. And even with the evil genius Goebbels and his propaganda machine, the Germans mostly remained indifferent. And even when the awful fate of the Jews started to trickle out (mass shootings, camps) there was no reaction. The Germans shrugged and went about their daily lives.
Then we have the search for Hitler’s order to begin the Final Solution, the physical liquidation of the entire population of Jews in Europe. It’s not there to be found. It does not exist. There’s a neat psychological parallel here – biographers have tried earnestly to discover the origins of Hitler’s truly towering psychopathic hatred of the Jews and they have found… really nothing. What explains this lunacy? Nothing. How could the Final Solution (Endlosung) which involved construction of extermination camps (as opposed to concentration camps) and experimenting on methods of mass slaughter (shoot them all? No, too demoralising for the poor soldiers who have to do it…carbon monoxide? No, too time-consuming…. Xyklon B? Perfect!...yes, some Nazis had meetings upon meetings to figure out this stuff) and the massive transportation of millions of Jews from the ghettos to the camps (all done during the height of the war, which you might have thought would make the Nazis forget about the Jews until the war was won, but oh no, not at all) – all of this was undertaken without any word from Hitler? Isn’t that fairly strange? Well, it’s never been found. Historians debate the chaotic nature of the power struggles within the Nazi party; maybe Himmler decided to get the Final Solution organised by the SS as a power grab, and kind of slipped it into conversation with Adolf over dinner, and Adolf nodded and told Heinrich he was a real Trojan and keep up the good work and pass the salt, maybe these vast events are decided by a few casual sentences exchanged between ghastly men.
I do not recommend this book, even though it’s written by one of the recognised authorities on German history. Prof Kershaw’s prose is deadly dull, his sentences strangle themselves in an attempt to make complex issues clear, he is very repetitive, and really, the issues dealt with here are better summed up in The Holocaust in History by Michael Marrus and Rethinking the Holocaust by Yehuda Bauer.
Then we have the search for Hitler’s order to begin the Final Solution, the physical liquidation of the entire population of Jews in Europe. It’s not there to be found. It does not exist. There’s a neat psychological parallel here – biographers have tried earnestly to discover the origins of Hitler’s truly towering psychopathic hatred of the Jews and they have found… really nothing. What explains this lunacy? Nothing. How could the Final Solution (Endlosung) which involved construction of extermination camps (as opposed to concentration camps) and experimenting on methods of mass slaughter (shoot them all? No, too demoralising for the poor soldiers who have to do it…carbon monoxide? No, too time-consuming…. Xyklon B? Perfect!...yes, some Nazis had meetings upon meetings to figure out this stuff) and the massive transportation of millions of Jews from the ghettos to the camps (all done during the height of the war, which you might have thought would make the Nazis forget about the Jews until the war was won, but oh no, not at all) – all of this was undertaken without any word from Hitler? Isn’t that fairly strange? Well, it’s never been found. Historians debate the chaotic nature of the power struggles within the Nazi party; maybe Himmler decided to get the Final Solution organised by the SS as a power grab, and kind of slipped it into conversation with Adolf over dinner, and Adolf nodded and told Heinrich he was a real Trojan and keep up the good work and pass the salt, maybe these vast events are decided by a few casual sentences exchanged between ghastly men.
I do not recommend this book, even though it’s written by one of the recognised authorities on German history. Prof Kershaw’s prose is deadly dull, his sentences strangle themselves in an attempt to make complex issues clear, he is very repetitive, and really, the issues dealt with here are better summed up in The Holocaust in History by Michael Marrus and Rethinking the Holocaust by Yehuda Bauer.
August 26, 2013
This book is an excellent summary of the historiography of an extremely complex event of world historic significance, namely the holocaust and the complicity of everyday Germans in the genocide. Kershaw himself is one of the leading scholars on Hitler and Nazism. While succinctly summarizing the views of competing historians, Kershaw firmly but thoughtfully asserts his moderate position that most of the German population can be divided into three groups: a rabidly anti-Semitic, violent minority, a sympathetic, pro-Jewish minority, and a mostly apathetic plurality that quietly acceded to the terror. Kershaw considers the arguments of his detractors carefully, at times qualifying his more forceful positions from the past, but mostly sticks to his arguments. He does, unfortunately, have two weaknesses. First, his prose is overly elaborate, almost confusingly so, as he is wont to run-on sentences. Second, I think he pays too much homage to his structuralist mentors in German history. But overall this is a great work, and I highly recommend it as an excellent summary of a debate that still lives on.
September 13, 2019
Ένα σύνολο ερευνών του "πατριάρχη" της ανάλυσης του Γ' Ράιχ Ian Kershaw.Το βιβλίο περιέχει έρευνες και αναλύσεις του Kershaw πάνω σε θέματα όπως το κατα πόσο ήταν γνωστές οι θηριωδίες κατα των Εβραίων στους απλούς Γερμανούς και αν υπήρχε μερίδα κόσμου των Γερμανών που αντέδρασε σ' όλα αυτά.
Επίσης,βοηθάει τον αναγνώστη ν' ανακαλύψει τις διαφορετικές οπτικές των ιστορικών πάνω στο θέμα του Χίτλερ και στο κατα πόσο η "Τελική Λύση" ήταν ρητή εντολή του Φύρερ ή προέκυψε απο ένα σύνολο ενεργειών.
Πολύ ενδιαφέρον βιβλίο για όποιον θέλει να ξεκαθαρίσει λίγο τα πράγματα στο μυαλό του,ίσως όμως φανεί βαρετό σε κάποιον που αναζητά απλά και μόνο ένα ιστορικό βιβλίο.
Επίσης,βοηθάει τον αναγνώστη ν' ανακαλύψει τις διαφορετικές οπτικές των ιστορικών πάνω στο θέμα του Χίτλερ και στο κατα πόσο η "Τελική Λύση" ήταν ρητή εντολή του Φύρερ ή προέκυψε απο ένα σύνολο ενεργειών.
Πολύ ενδιαφέρον βιβλίο για όποιον θέλει να ξεκαθαρίσει λίγο τα πράγματα στο μυαλό του,ίσως όμως φανεί βαρετό σε κάποιον που αναζητά απλά και μόνο ένα ιστορικό βιβλίο.
May 16, 2015
These 14 essays, written between 1983 and 2006, chart the course of Sir Ian Kershaw's scholarship as well as the work of other scholars in the changing historiography of Hitler, Nazism, and the Holocaust over the past four decades.
Although I devoured these 400 pages in three days, I wish I had read this collection when it was first published in 2008, shortly after I began my study of this most violent and depressing, yet fascinating, period. Alas, my extensive reading of Kershaw's other works, including his unparalleled two-volume biography of Hitler, and the work of the equally excellent Richard J. Evans, among other historians, is what brought me to this collection.
These are not narrative histories; instead they examine the writing of history and the debates of historians from the 1970s onward, when the 'social history' of life under the Third Reich began to be written. So now I am taking what Kershaw has to offer here and applying it retroactively to my prior readings.
You will be hard pressed to find a more thought-provoking, substantive analysis of the historiography of the Third Reich. And despite four decades of penetrating scholarship into major questions, precise answers remain elusive on some issues, including whether Hitler promulgated a single order for the execution of the 'Final Solution,' and if not, how the genocide of Europe's Jews came about, a process known as cumulative radicalization.
Possibly surprisingly to non-specialists (of which I am one), historians deeply disagree when it comes to pinpointing a specific date or period of time for a single 'Hitler order' (while all accepting his ultimate over-arching responsibility and centrality to the decision-making process; no Hitler, no Holocaust), with some placing it as late as mid-1942, several months after the genocidal murder of Soviet Jewry had begun in the wake of Operation Barbarossa but before the manufacture of mass death started in the gas chambers.
No smoking gun has been found, unsurprising when one learns Hitler never signed a written order about the Jews and avoided discussing the unfolding genocide -- which he more than anyone else brought about -- to his private audiences.
What is more important, in my view, is that historians have since moved past this unsolvable issue of a single decision or date to involving themselves with a deeper understanding of how -- not only why -- the Holocaust could have been perpetrated, beyond the dichotomous debate between the intentionalist and structuralist (or functionalist) camps.
This is where Kershaw's scholarship reached it apogee in his two-volume biography, explaining what 1) Hitler made possible and 2) the events that made a Hitler possible; and, his innovative application of the idea of 'working towards the Fuhrer.'
These scholarly essays are essential reading for anyone interested in the history, historiography, and memory of the Third Reich, not least because they raise questions relevant today about the role of ordinary citizens in the actions of their nation-state, from private dissent to active opposition, from passive indifference to active complicity.
Although I devoured these 400 pages in three days, I wish I had read this collection when it was first published in 2008, shortly after I began my study of this most violent and depressing, yet fascinating, period. Alas, my extensive reading of Kershaw's other works, including his unparalleled two-volume biography of Hitler, and the work of the equally excellent Richard J. Evans, among other historians, is what brought me to this collection.
These are not narrative histories; instead they examine the writing of history and the debates of historians from the 1970s onward, when the 'social history' of life under the Third Reich began to be written. So now I am taking what Kershaw has to offer here and applying it retroactively to my prior readings.
You will be hard pressed to find a more thought-provoking, substantive analysis of the historiography of the Third Reich. And despite four decades of penetrating scholarship into major questions, precise answers remain elusive on some issues, including whether Hitler promulgated a single order for the execution of the 'Final Solution,' and if not, how the genocide of Europe's Jews came about, a process known as cumulative radicalization.
Possibly surprisingly to non-specialists (of which I am one), historians deeply disagree when it comes to pinpointing a specific date or period of time for a single 'Hitler order' (while all accepting his ultimate over-arching responsibility and centrality to the decision-making process; no Hitler, no Holocaust), with some placing it as late as mid-1942, several months after the genocidal murder of Soviet Jewry had begun in the wake of Operation Barbarossa but before the manufacture of mass death started in the gas chambers.
No smoking gun has been found, unsurprising when one learns Hitler never signed a written order about the Jews and avoided discussing the unfolding genocide -- which he more than anyone else brought about -- to his private audiences.
What is more important, in my view, is that historians have since moved past this unsolvable issue of a single decision or date to involving themselves with a deeper understanding of how -- not only why -- the Holocaust could have been perpetrated, beyond the dichotomous debate between the intentionalist and structuralist (or functionalist) camps.
This is where Kershaw's scholarship reached it apogee in his two-volume biography, explaining what 1) Hitler made possible and 2) the events that made a Hitler possible; and, his innovative application of the idea of 'working towards the Fuhrer.'
These scholarly essays are essential reading for anyone interested in the history, historiography, and memory of the Third Reich, not least because they raise questions relevant today about the role of ordinary citizens in the actions of their nation-state, from private dissent to active opposition, from passive indifference to active complicity.
July 26, 2021
One of my favorite historians shares a number of edited academic papers that track his understanding of Hitler, the Third Reich, and their respective roles in the Holocaust.
If that sentence threw you, bear with me for a moment.
There is a common belief that Hitler had always planned to gain power and destroy European Jewry--but the evidence doesn't support that, particularly insofar as Hitler had ever developed or tried to implement a cogent plan.
Was Hitler's rhetoric violently antisemitic? Of course. Would the Holocaust have happened but for Hitler's coming to power? It's hard to see how it could have. And thus, of course, is Hitler responsible for the millions of Jews and others killed in the Holocaust and many of the other millions of deaths in WWII? Undoubtedly.
But just because he had talked about "eliminating" the Jews early in his political career doesn't mean he really had set out to do it with any reasonable expectation of success or a plausible way to make it happen. Nor was Germany prepared (or even likely) to commit these crimes just because he became Chancellor. This book reflects Kershaw's remarkable lifetime of work on the subject in a series of academic talks and papers in which he closely examines the evidence and wrestles with the still-unanswered questions about how one of humanity's greatest crimes happened.
I will say that if you're not familiar with a lot of the academic arguments re the Holocaust (eg, Goldhagen thesis) and terms like Lebensraum and Weltanshauung, I would probably not start off with this book. It's one of those texts where a familiarity with the common arguments is very helpful in digesting the arguments presented. That said, Kershaw is very good at walking the novice through the terms and concepts, but I would probably send most readers to his magisterial two-part biography of Hitler rather than this book.
Don't get me wrong: I really enjoyed this book, but it will be best for people who like reading academic history papers and arguments, not general audiences.
If that sentence threw you, bear with me for a moment.
There is a common belief that Hitler had always planned to gain power and destroy European Jewry--but the evidence doesn't support that, particularly insofar as Hitler had ever developed or tried to implement a cogent plan.
Was Hitler's rhetoric violently antisemitic? Of course. Would the Holocaust have happened but for Hitler's coming to power? It's hard to see how it could have. And thus, of course, is Hitler responsible for the millions of Jews and others killed in the Holocaust and many of the other millions of deaths in WWII? Undoubtedly.
But just because he had talked about "eliminating" the Jews early in his political career doesn't mean he really had set out to do it with any reasonable expectation of success or a plausible way to make it happen. Nor was Germany prepared (or even likely) to commit these crimes just because he became Chancellor. This book reflects Kershaw's remarkable lifetime of work on the subject in a series of academic talks and papers in which he closely examines the evidence and wrestles with the still-unanswered questions about how one of humanity's greatest crimes happened.
I will say that if you're not familiar with a lot of the academic arguments re the Holocaust (eg, Goldhagen thesis) and terms like Lebensraum and Weltanshauung, I would probably not start off with this book. It's one of those texts where a familiarity with the common arguments is very helpful in digesting the arguments presented. That said, Kershaw is very good at walking the novice through the terms and concepts, but I would probably send most readers to his magisterial two-part biography of Hitler rather than this book.
Don't get me wrong: I really enjoyed this book, but it will be best for people who like reading academic history papers and arguments, not general audiences.
June 18, 2012
Great book. Can get bland at times, but puts you in the shoes of what the people really thought about the regime and events going on during the Third Reich. Recommended.
March 13, 2024
Scary how history repeats itself. Do we ever learn, or is it that some never really let go of their hatred?
February 12, 2012
This book is rather dry compared to Kershaw's more well known best seller ones. It seems to be a collection of past essays. It is well worth spending time on this terrible period of human existence and Kershaw is as good as they come in providing insight.
June 24, 2013
Part 1 and 2 are brilliant and informative, but part 3 became a little tedious for those not invested in the relevant debates and difficulties amongst historians.
December 4, 2025
An academically rich book that brings together scholarly perspectives on how the Final Solution became possible, and examines the roles played by Hitler, the Nazi Party, and the German population. It highlights how Hitler’s charismatic authority—fundamentally incompatible with a collective leadership model such as a Russian-style politburo—created a system in which radicalization advanced step by step through a decentralized dynamic of “working toward the Führer.” This process unfolded alongside years of systematic dehumanization of German Jews and the everyday struggle of ordinary Germans to navigate a collapsing society. Together, these factors produced a toxic environment in which the Final Solution emerged not as an aberration, but as the tragically foreseeable outcome of the regime’s structure, ideology, and social conditions.
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November 13, 2024YEAHHHHH
September 5, 2021
First of all, I want to mention that this book is not for people who don't serious historiography. You won't really learn much about the regime itself as you would in a typical history book. This isn't meant to even deliver important lessons or offer insights. Rather, this book is a commentary on different historical perspectives on the Final Solution and its relationship with the German people as well as Adolf Hitler. Sprinkled throughout the book are Kershaw's own opinions and what he believes is the correct interpretation of the available history. That being said, this book is incredibly readable even for amateur historians and those who generally enjoy history. My disclaimer at the start of this review was for people who might expect a more "traditional" - whatever that may entail to you - book.
Overall, this is a fantastic piece of scholarship and a great introduction for people who are interested in getting really serious about Nazi Germany and its history. I will definitely explore more books from this subgenre and hope to learn a lot more!
Overall, this is a fantastic piece of scholarship and a great introduction for people who are interested in getting really serious about Nazi Germany and its history. I will definitely explore more books from this subgenre and hope to learn a lot more!
April 28, 2016
Se trata de una obra magistral, monumental. Un repaso y un resumen inmenso a la bibliografia y a las teorias que se mueven alrededor de la Solucion Final.
Leer este libro equivale a leer docenas de ensayos y libros de historia sobre el Holocausto. Kershaw se toma la molestia de comentarnos que dice cada corriente, cada historiador, en cada epoca y en cada zona del mundo (Alemania Orientel, Occidental, Israel, etc)
Leer este libro equivale a leer docenas de ensayos y libros de historia sobre el Holocausto. Kershaw se toma la molestia de comentarnos que dice cada corriente, cada historiador, en cada epoca y en cada zona del mundo (Alemania Orientel, Occidental, Israel, etc)
June 18, 2019
No ha estado mal. No me ha resultado pesado, no he necesito ir más despacio para digerir los datos.
Al final es un poco repetitivo. Hay una frase que no sé cuantas veces ha sido escrita, pero me daban ganas de darme de cabezazos cada vez que aparecía.
No sé si volveré a leer algún libro de este historiador. Ya veremos.
Al final es un poco repetitivo. Hay una frase que no sé cuantas veces ha sido escrita, pero me daban ganas de darme de cabezazos cada vez que aparecía.
No sé si volveré a leer algún libro de este historiador. Ya veremos.
June 28, 2012
This book saved my project :')
May 22, 2018
An enlightening and in depth look at one of the most difficult periods in European history. The range of sources and information Kershaw goes through is really quite phenomenal as well as considering the wide range of viewpoints taken from the 1950's all the way up to the early to late 2000's. Quite difficult at times but well worth the read. Issues covered are things like the Historikerstreit, the role of various agencies such as the SS, structuralist vs intentionalist viewpoints, Hans Mommsen, Lucy Dawidowicz etc. A critique of Daniel Goldhagen as well as the historiography and uniqueness of Nazism.
April 26, 2019
What a brilliant book! Not a popular history you'd expect from Kershaw, but a collection of old academic articles, but edited for a mass market audience. The problem with a lot of research on Nazi Germany is that unless you know the field already, it is difficult to place particular interpretations within the broader discussion (Richard Evans's popular trilogy is an exception to this). Hence, a collection of mostly historiographical papers that tackle the debate between structuralist and intentionalist approaches is more than welcome. A bit dry for the non-academic, perhaps, but certainly worth a read for the dilettante.
June 13, 2024
I think this is a helpful example of an important genre of books where older historians who have shaped their fields basically compile key historiographical interventions over the years, which for historians of Nazi germany in this case will be quite helpful.
How much it’ll be useful/helpful to a wider audience (like me as a historian but not someone who studies this subfield) is going to vary but I think there’s a lot of really clarifying stuff in here, especially re: debates about German support for the Nazis and source issues around that, that I can see recommending it easily.
How much it’ll be useful/helpful to a wider audience (like me as a historian but not someone who studies this subfield) is going to vary but I think there’s a lot of really clarifying stuff in here, especially re: debates about German support for the Nazis and source issues around that, that I can see recommending it easily.
August 21, 2025
A compilation of essays from the legendary Ian Kershaw’s career which I read for a project I’m working on. A fascinating read, but definitely not an entry point for beginners. Contains lots of details on the history of scholarship on the Third Reich and the Holocaust, but I wish the author included more reflections on how the scholarship has evolved since many of these essays were first published.
March 19, 2024
This volume is very thorough. Its conclusion that the Final Solution was a unique phenoomeon of Nazi Germany has been corrected by history. The surging antisemitism present aroudnd the world at all levels of discourse shows this ideology is an ever present danger not limited to one period and country.
August 18, 2019
Great collection of essays presenting an argument that resonates with first-world reactions to human right violations in third-world countries. Thoroughly researched and touches on public opinion as opposed to pure politics which is refreshing.
July 18, 2020
Very detailed work on the importance of Hitler as a leader and his persona on the holocaust. Brings also good insights of the German population stance on the fate of the jews. It lost me a bit at the end of academic discussions on how to study the third reich
April 22, 2021
Basically a collection of what seems like academic papers discussing the methodology of writing about the third reich. Also reviews of other academic writers. I’m really interested in this period and this was still a painful read.
November 10, 2017
An incredibly hard slog to get through. Very academic and challenging.
August 13, 2019
Rather repetitive, especially for narrative history.
September 12, 2020
A outstanding collection of essays by one of today's foremost scholars on the subject. Both the historical and historiographical essays are lucid and thoughtful.
December 6, 2020
Was more of a dissertation pulling together or apart other pieces about the subject.
September 20, 2021
Truly amazing. Love the way this was presented, the history, the facts and the flow.
February 19, 2022
It is striking that - when talking about the atrocities of the II World War and the genocides that occurred subsequently - the author never mentioned the Jasenovac genocide, in which more than 1 million Serbs, Jews and Roma were killed by the pro-Nazi Croat Ustasha regime.
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