Hitler [Transcription note: Bracketed [Page] links provide access
to the individual images from which these transcriptions were
made]
This subservient attitude is also obvious in his use of titles. This
is well described by Lania (148) reporting on Hitler' s trial:
"In the course of his peroration he came to speak of Generals
Ludendorff and von Seeckt; at such moments, he stood at attention
and trumpeted forth the words 'General' and 'Excellency'. It made no
difference that one of the generals was on his side, while
the other, von Seeckt, Commander-in-Chief of the Reichswehr, was his
enemy; he abandoned himself entirely to the pleasure of pronouncing
the high-sounding titles. He never said 'General Seeckt', he said 'His
Excellency Herr Colonel General von Seeeke, letting the words melt
on his tongue and savoring their after-taste."
Many others have also commented on this tendency to use the
full
[Page 71] title. It also fits in with his very
submissive behavior to his officers during the last war which has
been commented upon by several of his comrades. It seems safe to
assume that this is a fundamental trait in his character which becomes
less obvious as he climbs the ladder but is present nevertheless.
The Fuehrer is also ill at ease in the company of diplomats and
avoids contact with them as much as possible. Fromm (369) describes
his behavior at a diplomatic dinner in the following words:
"The Corporal seemed to be ill at ease, awkward and moody. His
coat-tails embarrassed him. Again and again his hand fumbled for
the encouraging support of his sword belt. Each time he missed the
familiar cold bracing support, his uneasiness grew. He crumpled his
handkerchief, tugged it, rolled it, just plain stage-fright."
Henderson (124) writes:
"It will always be a matter of regret to me that I was never able to
study Hitler in private life, as this might have given me the
chance to see him under normal conditions and to talk with him as
man to man. Except for a few brief words at chance meetings, I never
met him except upon official, and invariably disagreeable, business.
He never attended informal parties at which diplomats might be present,
and when friends of mine did try to arrange it, he always got out of
meeting me in such a manner on the ground of precedent... But he always
looked self-conscious when he had to entertain the diplomatic corps,
which happened normally three times a year."
Hitler also becomes nervous and tends to lose his composure when he
has to meet newspapermen. Being a genius of propaganda he realizes the
power of the press in influencing public opinion and he always
provides the press with choice seats at all
[Page 72]
ceremonies. When it comes to interviews, however, he feels himself on
the defensive and insists that the questions be submitted in advance.
When the interview takes place he is able to maintain considerable
poise because he has his answers prepared. Even then he gives no
opportunity to ask for further clarification because he immediately
launches into a lengthy dissertation, which sometimes develops into
a tirade. When this is finished, the interview is over (0echsner, 665).
He is also terrified when he is called upon to speak to
intellectuals (Wagner, 487) or any group in which he feels opposition
or the possibility of criticism.
Hitler's adjustment to people in general is very poor. He is not really
on intimate terms with any of his associates. Hess is the only associate,
with the possible exception of Streicher, who has ever had the privilege
of addressing him with the familiar "Du". Even Goering, Goebbels and
Himmler must address him with the more formal "Sie" although each of
them would undoubtedly be willing to sacrifice his right hand for the
privilege of addressing him in the informal manner. It is true that
outside of his official family there are a few people in Germany,
notably Mrs. Bechstein and the Winifred Wagner family who address him
as "Du" and call him by his nickname, "Wolf", but even these are few
and far between. On the whole, he always maintains a considerable
distance from other people. Ludecke, who was very close to him for a
while, writes:
"Even in his intimate and cozy moments, I sensed no attitude of
familiarity towards him on the part of his staff; there
was
[Page 73] always a certain distance about him, that
subtle quality of aloofness...."(180)
And Fry (577) says:
"He lives in the midst of many men and yet he lives alone."
It is well-known that he cannot carry on a normal conversation or
discussion with people. Even if only one person is present he must do
all the talking. His manner of speech soon loses any conversational
qualities it might have had and takes on all the characteristics of
a lecture and may easily develop into a tirade. He simply forgets his
companions and behaves as though he were addressing a multitude.
Strasser (297) has given a good, brief description of his manner:
"Now Hitler drew himself erect and by the far-away look in his eyes
showed plainly that he was not speaking merely to me; he was addressing
an imaginary audience that stretched far beyond the walls of the
living room."
This is not only true in connection with political matters. Even when
he is alone with his adjutants or immediate staff and tries to be
friendly he is unable to enter into give-and-take conversation. At
times he scans to want to get closer to people and relates personal
experiences, such as, "When I was in Vienna," or "When I was in the
Army,". But under these circumstances, too, he insists on doing all
the talking and always repeats the same stories over and over again
in exactly the same form, almost as though he had memorized them.
The gist of most of these stories is contained in MEIN KAMPF. His
friends have
[Page 74] all heard them dozens of
times but this does not deter him from repeating them again with
great enthusiasm. Nothing but the most superficial aspects of these
experiences are ever touched upon. It seems as though he is unable
to give more of himself than that (Hanfstaengl, 898).
Price (230) says: "When more than two people are present, even
though they are his intimate circle, there is no general discourse.
Either Hitler talks and they listen, or else they talk among
themselves and Hitler sits silent." And this is the way it seems to
be. He is not at all annoyed when members of the group talk to each
other unless of course he feels like doing the talking himself. But
ordinarily he seem to enjoy listening to others while he makes
believe that he is attending to something else. Nevertheless, he
overhears everything which is being said and often uses it later
on. (Hanfstaengl, 914) However, he does not give credit to the individual from whom he has learned it and simply gives it out as his own.
Rauschning (266) says:
"He has always been a poseur. He remembers things that he has heard
and has a faculty for repeating them in such a way that the listener
is lead to believe that they are his own."
Roehm also complained of this:
"If you try to tell him anything, he knows everything already. Though
he often does what we advise, he laughs in our faces at the moment,
and later does the very thing as if it were all his own idea and
creation. He doesn't even seem to be aware of how dishonest he is." (176)
Another one of his tricks which drives people and particularly his
associates to distraction is his capacity for forgetting. This trait has
been commented upon so much that it scarcely needs mentioning here. We
all know how he can say something one day and a few days later say the
opposite, completely oblivious to his earlier statement. He does not only
do this in connection with international affairs but also with his
closest associates. When they show their dismay and call his attention
to the inconsistency he flies off into a rage and demands to know if
the other person thinks he is a liar. Evidently the other leading Nazis
have also learned the trick, for Rauschning (266) says:
"Most of the Nazis, with Hitler at their head, literally forget, like
hysterical women, anything they have no desire to remember."
Although Hitler almost invariably introduces a few humorous elements
into his speeches and gives the impression of considerable wit, he seems
to lack any real sense of humor. He can never take a joke on himself.
Heyst (600) says, "He is unable to purify his gloomy self with
self-irony and humor." Von Wiegand (492) says he is extremely sensitive
to ridicule and Huss says (408) "He takes himself seriously and will
flare up in a tempermental rage at the least impingement by act or
attitude on the dignity and holiness of state and Fuehrer." When
everything is going well he sometimes gets into a gay and whimsical
mood in a circle of close friends. His humor then is confined almost
wholly to a kind of teasing or ribbing. The ribbing is
usually
[Page 76] in connection with alleged love
affairs of his associates but are never vulgar and only hint at
sexual factors (Hanfstaengl 910). Friedelinde Wagner provides us with
an example of his teasing. Goering and Goebbels were both present at
the time that he said to the Wagner family:
"You all know what a volt is and an ampere, don't you? Right. But do
you know what a goebbels, a goering are? A goebbels is the amount of
nonsense a man can speak in an hour and a goering is the amount of
metal that can be pinned on a man's breast." (632)
His other form of humor is mimicking. Almost everyone concedes that
he has great talent along these lines and he frequently mimics his
associates in their presence much to the amusement of everyone
except the victim. He also loved to mimic Sir Eric Phipps and later
Chamberlain.
Hitler's poor adaptation to people is perhaps most obvious in his
relations to women. Since he has become a political figure, his name
has been linked with a great many women, particularly in the foreign
press. Although the German public seem to know very little about this
phase of his life, his associates have seen a great deal of it and the
topic is always one for all kinds of conjectures. Roughly speaking,
his relations to women fall into three categories; (a) much older
women; (b) actresses and passing fancies, and (c) more or less
enduring relationships.
A. As early as 1920 Frau Carola Hofman, a 61 year old widow, took
him under her wing and for years played the part of [00010083.gif">[Page 77]
foster mother. Then came Frau Helena Bechstein, the wife of the famous Berlin
piano manufacturer, who took over the role. She spent large quantities of
money on Hitler in the early days of the party, introduced him to her social
circle and lavished maternal affection on hm, She often said that she wished
that Hitler were her son and while he was imprisoned in Landsberg she claimed
that she was his adopted mother in order that she fight visit him.
Strasser (300) says that Hitler would often sit at her feet and lay
his head against her bosom while she stroked his hair tenderly and
murmured, "Mein Woelfchen".
[ Previous |
Index |
Next ]
Home ·
Site Map ·
What's New? ·
Search
Nizkor
© The Nizkor Project, 1991-2012
This site is intended for educational purposes to teach about the Holocaust and
to combat hatred.
Any statements or excerpts found on this site are for educational purposes only.
As part of these educational purposes, Nizkor may
include on this website materials, such as excerpts from the writings of racists and antisemites. Far from approving these writings, Nizkor condemns them and
provides them so that its readers can learn the nature and extent of hate and antisemitic discourse. Nizkor urges the readers of these pages to condemn racist
and hate speech in all of its forms and manifestations.
As His Associates Know Him
The
original plaintext version of this file is available via ftp.