RoR: Forum

A sordid regime it was for certain. I recall reading that in 1932 Hitler suffered a severe depression and contemplated suicide according to his journal notes. Unfortunately, the election victory of 1933 made him change his mind.
(Edited by Michelle Cohen on 10/06, 7:45am)

Post 1

Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - 9:49am

I remember an old Charlie Chaplin movie called "The Great Dictator" that satirized Hitler. Chaplin's dictator character paused during one of his fiery speeches before a huge audience to pour himself a glass of water. He did so and then poured some of the water inside the front of his pants! I never quite got that gag. With the release of this book, I need to re-think what Chaplin intended to convey in that scene. I thought it rather provocative for that era of Hollywood.

Luke Setzer

Post 2

Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - 9:53am

It would seem as though all of Nazi Germany and the Holocaust boiled down to little more than a group of neurotic closet homosexuals deciding that the Jewish people didn't fit their ideal of aesthetic beauty, and so they decided to give the entire world -- starting with Germany -- a monstrous makeover.

After reading through a bit of Mein Kampf, I truly got a sense of the superficiality of Hitler's perspective and true motivations.

Post 3

Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - 1:06pm

I’m really confused as to the relevance of this book, Orion Reasoner. Does it (and/or do you) suggest that Hitler’s alleged homosexuality was an essential element of his evil philosophy? What exactly defines “sordid”? And would you really characterize (and trivialize) Nazi aggression to be a “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy makeover” of Europe?

Post 4

Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - 9:30pm

Never read the book, and wouldn't. It appears to me to be just another attempt to do history in a Freudian way, reducing everything to psychological repression and the results thereof. Trivial and superficial are words that come to mind.
(Edited by Cameron Pritchard on 10/06, 9:31pm)

Post 5

Wednesday, October 6, 2004 - 10:06pm

Glenn,

Actually, that's a fair question...

What I do believe -- and I believe that the book illuminates -- is that it was the neurosis and denial of Hitler and his crew over their homosexual activities that led them to their psychotic and murderous extremes, not the activities themselves.

Perhaps my "Queer Eye" comment wasn't right on. In fact, now that you mention it, I'm sure it wasn't.

(Edited by Orion Reasoner on 10/06, 10:08pm)

Post 6

Thursday, October 7, 2004 - 3:14am

Someone on this board in the past - I can't remember who, but clearly a visitor, not a SOLOist - cited that book as evidence of the innate depravity of homosexuals. If one were to psychologise about Hitler, it would be more plausible to assert that his conduct was evidence of the depravity of *repressing* one's homosexuality. And I would urge all pseudo-Objectivists who advocate such repression to take serious note!

I'm personally inclined to believe that Hitler was *indeed* a closet gay. I haven't read the book, but I viewed a documentary about it & its author, & what he had unearthed seemed to be convincing, & to indicate classic symptoms of repression writ large (including the mass-murder of *unrepressed* gays, & a cosmetic heterosexual relationship, with Eva Braun, that was never consummated). Of course, there was far more to it than just repressed sexuality, but I suspect that this was indeed part of the evil cocktail of motivations that was Adolf Hitler.

Linz

Post 7

Thursday, October 7, 2004 - 11:24am

Yes, I agree with Lindsay on this one, actually.

But I tend to also wonder whether you could ever clearly delineate Hitler as homosexual, neurotic, or just plain sadistic psychopathic. Honestly, I think that Hitler was a psychopath whose impulses found expression in any medium available to him: sexuality, politics, militarism.

Post 8

Saturday, July 30, 2005 - 9:16pm