(Browning, 167) Browning suggests that there is an element of calculation and free will here that goes against the notion of the soldier as the mindless vessel of Nazi terrorism.
Browning believed that situational factors be assessed in tandem with psychological factors. (Browning, 186) Though Browning is dismissive of the notion of purely situational factors, he seems to appreciate the significance of situational factors in the gradual transformation of the individual. Whereas the purely situational explanation characterizes these Nazi soldiers as shallow brutes, incapable of the recognizing the larger consequences of their actions, Browning characterizes these soldiers as thoughtful, mature individuals, who are decent because they intend to be and cruel because they intend to be.
Of all of the literature and research involving the Holocaust and the men who executed it, Browning chooses an interesting idea to settle on: Primo Levi's "Gray Zone." (Browning, 186) Levi coined the term to describe the innumerable shades of culpability present in the space between the victim and the perpetrator. (Browning, 187) for example, even Holocaust victims could incur culpability as evidenced by the participation of some Jews in the execution of their fellow prisoners, some doing so merely to prolong their lives. (Browning, 187) Browning includes the "Gray Zone" because it allows him to identify the tiny variations in culpability which become so significant with a topic such as the Holocaust.
Browning's Synthesis
In his critical evaluation, Browning presents strong arguments and evidence from a variety of scholars. He does not need to conduct his own experiments or craft his own theory on human frailty. Instead,...
Clearly, the reason lies within fervent nationalism and Hitler's mad scheme known as the "Final Solution." As to the book's strengths and weaknesses, Browning conveys the true brutal face of World War II via his highly-detailed analysis of Battalion 101 and its members; he also very forcefully relates to the reader that the war was fought for many reasons, the most important being the destruction of Hitler's Nazi Germany and
Ordinary Men Christopher R. Browning is a history professor at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. His work on holocaust historiography has allowed Browning to contribute to the world's most important compendium of holocaust history at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem. The sources used to write Ordinary Men were primary sources only: documentary evidence mainly emerging in the legal trials that ensued. Therefore, the author is well qualified to address the matter
Himmler himself came up with an explanation for those who could not obey orders, in spite of their unconditioned obedience, so that their comrades and the rest of the population get a message of a condition in their mental health, rather than a disobedience dictated by their human nature. Almost a century and a half after the official abolition of slavery of the U.S., a comparison comes to mind. The
Introduction In the decades that followed World War Two and the unspeakable horrors of The Holocaust, much study has been conducted to both learn the details of all the interlocking forces that enabled these atrocities. Scholars and historians today have much data about how the Germans engaged in and perpetuated The Holocaust. There is a robust comprehension about the motivating factors of how the Holocaust was carried out. There isn’t a
In the horrifying details regarding a mass execution operation conducted by a series of German platoons, one man recalls that "it was in no way the case that those who did not want to or could not carry out the shooting of human beings with their own hands could not keep themselves out of the task."(Browning, 65). Browning indicates that many Germans felt inclined by responsibility to follow the
Christopher Browning's Ordinary Men What was the situation of the Police Battalion 101 that prompted their actions? "How did a battalion of middle-aged reserve policemen find themselves facing the task of shooting some 1,500 Jews" in a Polish village (Browning 3). This is the central question of Christopher Browning's Ordinary Men. The policemen were not fit for military duty, but they were subjected to the same political and military propaganda as the
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