Ascent.



"The hero... is neither a superman nor a puppet. He is a very interesting contemporary and viewed quantitatively, a man who has stirred up the masses. 

 "The basic problem with approaching (him) is to explain how such a narrow-minded unpleasant fellow with so few intellectual gifts and social attributes... could found and and carry a movement of such dimensions and consequence?

 "(Who were) the conservative elites who ushered (him) through the doors of power? And it is impossible to overlook the educated, bourgeoise contempt for the half-ignorant arriviste.

 "In many situations (he) didn't need to do much at all since society - everyone from the underlings surrounding him to ordinary people on the street - were increasingly inclined to anticipate and fulfill (his) every wish.

 "Without the readiness of many people to work for the man in charge there would be no way he could achieve his....aims.

 "How do we explain how someone with so few intellectual gifts and social attributes ... could nevertheless have such a immense historical impact, could make the entire world hold its breath?

 "(His) sole talent...an ability to excite the base instincts of the masses...an extraordinarily gifted speaker, and that capability was of inestimable importance in his rise to power. But (he) was not just an excellent demagogue. He was also a fairly gifted actor who had assumed the art of appearing in a variety of masks and roles. 

 "The artistry with which (he) was able to conceal his real intentions from both friends and foes was another main key to his success as a politician. 'Bottomless mendacity' was his primary personal characteristic.  

 "He wasn't even honest towards to his most intimate confidants...he was so thoroughly untruthful that he could no longer recognize the difference between lies and truth. (He) was the consummate role player who had repeatedly got the better of his conservative allies.

 "In his ability to instantaneously analyze and exploit situations he was far superior not only to his rivals but also to the politicians from ...mainstream parties. He was able, within a few months...to subjugate his conservative partners...although they were convinced that they had co-opted him for their ends.

 "(His) unusually improvisational and personal style of leadership, which created constant responsibility conflicts and an anarchic tangle of offices and portfolios, was anything but an expression of political incompetence. On the contrary, it served to make (his) own supremacy unassailable. 

 "It is a huge mistake to assume that a criminal on the millennial scale of (him) must have been a monster. Naturally it would be easier to reduce him to a psychopath who used political action to realize his homicidal tendencies...the growing tendency...to depict (him) as a carpet-chewing hot-headed dictator who blew his stack on the slightest of occasions.  

 "If there are no human characteristics in the picture, if one ignores his powers of persuasion, his winning qualities and the charm was capable of, one will never do justice to him as a phenomenon.

 "What was it about (him) that allowed him to impress and indeed bewitch not just the people but many foreigners as well? (Nor should we) forget what a massive effect he had on people. That would be to make things too easy for us, these two seeming contradictions within his personality - this schizophrenia - were likely what produced the enormous energy within his person.

 "Such references to (his) unique dual nature, the conjunction of winning characteristics and criminal energy should not be dismissed...on the contrary, we must take such statements seriously if we are to understand the seductive force (he) possessed not just for his own entourage but for large segments of the...population. 

 "He was a figure with a great many qualities and masks. If we look behind the public persona...we can see a human being with winning and revolting characteristics, undeniable talents and obviously deep-seated psychological complexes, huge destructive energy and a homicidal bent."*

* from 'Hitler: Ascent, 1989-1939' by Volker Ullrich.

© 😎 Brian Clewly Johnson

Amagansett NY 🇺🇸

 Thanks for reading. And best wishes for a jolly festive season! 🎄




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