Assess the view that the Holocaust was mainly a result of a long term plan by Hitler to eliminate the Jews.
Using these four passages and your own knowledge, assess the view that the Holocaust was mainly a result of a long term plan by Hitler to eliminate the Jews.
Crucially, very few historians would now argue that the Holocaust itself; the carefully coordinated genocide of Europe’s Jewish population, was a long term plan by Hitler. However, the very name, “Final Solution”, clarifies the position of this policy as the culmination of a determined effort to achieve the fundamental racial objective which underpinned the Hitler’s aspirations. The inherent centrality of anti-semitism to Hitler’s ideology probably bears closest resemblance to a “long term plan”, with the “clear and constant… eliminationist desire”, as Passage C describes, the defining characteristic of the regime. Although Passage A, correctly stresses the significance of the war in intensifying the central importance of the Jewish Question, such urgency was undoubtedly a product first and foremost of the years of relentless anti-semitism which preceded, and the perpetuation of the sense of destiny explained by Hitler himself in “The Gemlich Letter” as early as Sept 1919, “It’s final aim must unshakably be the removal of the Jews altogether”. And, while Passage A attempts to portray subsequent radicalisation as an almost inevitable product of war by linking military success to logistical strain; Hitler was in fact instrumental more contemporaneously, with his oft-repeated “prophecy” making action critical in the light of the other alternative. At this time logistics directed attention onto the escalating ideological imperative to make the Holocaust resemble the only solution to the problem which had been so firmly established in the Nazi psyche.
In the absence of any clear and detailed “long term plan” focused irreconcilably upon producing genocide; Passage C’s assessment of a “regime.. determined to undertake a task- the elimination of the Jews” , highlights the idea that the Nazis sense of purpose was the primary factor in the establishment of the “final solution”. The wording of this account is enlightening in regard to a “plan” as the author uses the phrase “long term” on three occasions, but never “plan”; rather “goals”, “intentions” and “ideal”. This draws our attention to the other key word “eliminate”, because the meaning of this was never clarified. In line with his overall argument the effect is to imply that the Holocaust in itself a long term plan, which is a misrepresentation given the author’s avoidance of this terminology. In truth, the language used by Hitler on the issue was only consistent it is obscurity. The impassioned language of “Mein Kampf” in which he captures the ultimate task to, “produce images of the Lord and not monstrosities halfway between man and ape”, reflects an emotional involvement inseparable from the policy; though as early as the “Gemlich Letter”, Hitler claimed unique “rationality” in his anti-semitism which would define policy and ensure a stronger Germany. Passage B contradicts the idea of rationality to an extent by emphasizing the “mythical target of ‘the Jew’”, to reflect the more immediate emotive tactics employed by propagandists which were required in spite of Hitler’s firm personal belief in the logic of removing the corruptive influence of Jews. Rather than focusing solely on public opinion, which whilst relevant, was limited in its capacity to actually effect the Holocaust decision, Passage D insists upon the overall clarity of the message which meant Hitler’s ideas could be acted upon. Kershaw, who has described Hitler’s status as “the embodiment of the ‘idea’ and its organizing genius”, uses the example of his absence from the apparently crucial Wannsee Conference to illustrate the point. The personality cult made his authority unchallengeable and even if the more detailed ‘organizing’ responsibility would actually fall upon followers striving toward his obscured but ambitious target; it was his ‘idea’ that was so instrumental, as it directed the entire radicalization process. Although these sources have different emphases, with Passage B less useful in determining the link between ideology and definitive action, they support the idea that from the level of Nazi leaders to the public, there was a clear sense of purpose instilled through constant top down propaganda which produced the necessary psychological preparedness to ultimately pursue genocide. Hitler benefitted from the obscuring of any detailed long term plan, because attention was focused on the open ended racial imperative which would inevitably lead to radicalisation as his followers came to see the Jewish Problem as one which must be solved by any means.
