Unwilling Germans: The Goldhagen Debate

by Robert R. Shandley

Few if any works of the past fifty years have moved a broad section of the German public to think about their country's Nazi past as has Daniel Jonah Goldhagen's Hitler's Willing Executioners. The main argument of his book is that Germans committed the unthinkable acts of the Holocaust not because they were forced to but out of a deeply held conviction that killing Jews was morally just. Unwilling Germans? traces the intense and varied reception of a book that has created more heated debate than any other treatment of Germany's genocidal past. Unwilling Germans? reprints articles that originally appeared in German newspapers, the popular press, and journals, as well as offering original essays. The book traces the initial reactions in Germany to the debate surrounding the U.S. publication of the book, the subsequent reviews and reactions upon the publication of the German translation, and includes contributions by both Goldhagen himself and American historian Christopher Browning. A unique and fascinating collection, Unwilling Germans? will help to sort out the confusing nature of the response to the "Goldhagen Debate".

Genres: European History, Holocaust, History, War

312 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1998

Reviews

[June · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Germans are a bit "touchy" about that whole Nazi thing...so when Daniel Goldhagen wrote "Hitler's Willing Executioners," a brilliant book about how ordinary Germans participated in killing Jews during WWII, German reviews were defensive, to say the least. This book collects many of the articles about the book that appeared in Germany. Most of the reviewers are in denial. Big time. But then most of the reviewers had parents or grandparents that participated in the atrocities...hmmm...But the most interesting thing is despite the overwhelmingly NEGATIVE reviews the book received, the German public responded POSITIVELY. They packed Goldhagen's lectures when he went on a publicity tour throughout the country. The young people weren't afraid to examine their history and they didn't buy some lame-ass excuse about following orders. Maybe the children are our future...at least they won't turn out to be dirty Nazis...

[clary · Rating 3 out of 5]

not sure if i’ll ever be fully on one side or the other of the goldhagen debate, but this book provides it’s arguments well and was a good “buddy read” for the original material.