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

Brustein, Professor William

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0300065337 ISBN 13: 9780300065336

Publisher: Yale University Press, 1996

Synopsis

Argues that Germans who joined the Nazi party before 1933 did so out of economic self-interest

About this title

Review:

How the Nazi party found roots and then flourished out of an educated, modern society is a question that haunts the 20th century. In The Logic of Evil, William Brustein, a sociology professor at the University of Minnesota, offers an intriguing argument: the citizens of Germany who supported the Nazis were motivated by economic self-interest. He says the Nazis' popularity increased because of their "superlative success at fashioning economic programs that addressed the material needs of millions of Germans." Brustein provides impressive evidence to back his thesis; he and a research team went through the files of 42,000 Nazi party members and found a disproportionate number in occupations who benefited from the Nazis' economic programs. His is an argument that deserves serious merit, particularly given the blatant economic appeals some current leaders make to their constituencies.

About the Author:

William Brustein is professor and chair of the Department of Sociology at the University of Minnesota.

About this edition

• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication date: 1996
• ISBN 10: 0300065337
• ISBN 13: 9780300065336
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 252