La mayoría de los elementos de la ideología nazi fueron absorbidos por el estudio de Hitler de las obras que surgieron de los cambios políticos

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Pregunta Según la ideología nazi, ¿qué sectores de la sociedad estarían incluidos dentro de Volksgemeinschaft?

Preguntas ¿Cuál fue la plataforma política de los nazis en los años veinte? ¿Cuál era el significado del "socialismo" en el término "nacionalsocialismo"?

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Question Which policy areas might you expect to be particularly infl uenced by Nazi ideology? Why?

Ideology and historical motivation • Is ideology essential for political success? • Does a fi rm ideology always bring intolerance? • What is the main quality that defi nes an ideology? Should it be revolutionary? Should it be inspirational? (Can you suggest another quality?) • What ethical issues arise from Hitler’s racialist theories? Are we likely to judge such ethical considerations differently today from those living at the time?

Theory of knowledge Theory of knowledge

Historical debate The main area of historical debate relates to confl ict between the intentionalist and structuralist schools of thought. Intentionalists (see page 89) argue that Hitler’s policies were shaped by ideology and that he knew from a very early stage what he wanted to accomplish. They see Hitler’s actions as part of a carefully conceived plan to translate ideology into action. Structuralists, on the other hand, believe that Hitler’s actions were moulded by circumstance and that, while he had broad ideological principles, the actual detail of his policies evolved almost haphazardly.

Ideology was crucial to the success of Hitler as a single-party leader. However, Hitler controlled how ideology was used to further his own political ends. He was not driven simply by the desire to put ideological principles into practice, but had his own agenda and moulded Nazi ideology to fi t it.