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

by Professor William Brustein

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

Genres: History, Germany, Nonfiction

252 pages, Hardcover

First published August 28, 1996

Reviews

[Katherine Addison · Rating 3 out of 5]

For better transparency, that subtitle should read "The Sociological Origins of the Nazi Party," because that's what Brustein is doing. He's analyzing the data provided by NSDAP member cards, and doing so in a very narrowly sociological framework. His thesis is that the support of ordinary Germans for the Nazi Party can be explained entirely by rational economic self-interest. No need to talk about Hitler the demagogue or the German tradition of anti-Semitism--it all comes down to the Nazis' proposed economic programs.

Don't get me wrong: Brustein's data are fascinating, and I think his work does help explain why the Nazis did better among certain social groups. But I don't buy his thesis that the rise of the NSDAP can be satisfactorily explained by people making well-informed, rational, economically-motivated decisions.

[Sophia Kut · Rating 4 out of 5]

very informative….

[Shannon Wyss · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book but dry and dense. Brustein analyzes why Germans joined the Nazi party before Hitler's appointment as Chancellor of the country. His surprising but very well supported conclusion: for most Germans, it wasn't anti-semitism but economic need that led them to become Nazis.

Unfortunately, his book assumes a much greater knowledge of Weimar Germany than i possess (i still have no idea what the Young and Dawes plans were, for instance, even after reading his entire book). And being completely quantitative, it tends to be on the dry end of things. I could have used a Weimar Germany 101 course before reading this book. And Brustein could have spiced up his analysis with qualitative data.

All in all, though, a good book. I'm glad i read it and have a deeper, more nuanced view, of pre-WWII Nazis.

[Alexandro Guillen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written not as literature but rather as an academic research paper. The author presents his thesis and does an good job of supporting his position as to what caused Germans to join the Nazi party and why.
This book has a very technical writing style as opposed to a the story telling literary style of "popular history".