I had entered the beer hall with scepticism earlier tonight.
I went to see a certain Adolf Hitler speak. I had heard much of his
ideals, and his stirring speeches but I wanted to see for myself.
Many of my friends have turned over to his party, the Nazis, and up
till now their devotion to that party has so amazed me that I had to
go see what Hitler, and the Nazis were all about. Now I can’t
sleep, I have to recount the amazing experience I had. As I walked
in I didn’t know quite what to expect. A speech like any other, I
thought, would most likely take place. With all due respect I
thought I would walk out with the same scepticism I entered with.
There were many others
there, I don’t know exactly how many, but the room was full, so
full there was only standing room. I saw Hitler enter the stage.
Somewhat of a hush fell over the crowd, a reverence. I looked around
in confusion almost, noting the reverence this crowd had for this
man. He began to speak. At first this speech was not anything
extraordinary. He began it rather quietly. His voice rose quickly,
however, into almost a shriek. He put his whole body into every
word. His voice sounded horse and rasping. His hand moved back and
forth, in an urgent pleading way. He looked like a fanatic, but the
energy in the crowd was amazing. I paid closer and closer attention
to his speech. It became only him and I in that room. Everything
else was blocked out. All I could hear, all I could see was the
beckoning, frantic voice of Hitler. He spoke of revival, new ideals,
a new, better Germany. He spoke of our problems with such disdain,
and put into words what every man in that room felt in his heart.
He had me under his
hypnotic spell. Everything he said with such vigour, such emotion
and intensity rang true in my heart. I found myself becoming more
and more involved in his words. The energy of the crowd was
building-everyone, farmers, workers, factory owners, military alike
could relate to these ideals. We all leaned forward with intensity
gazing at Hitler. His voice shook the room in its power. I felt a
rush of excitement, hope, and new beginning sweep over me from head
to toe. Every word he spoke was like a hot iron cleansing a deep
wound. His voice had such a rhythm to it, every word pronounced in a
rhythmic pattern. The screeching voice did more than change my mind,
it seemed it went to such an extent as to change my soul.. At the
end of the speech he yelled GERMANY AWAKE! This was followed by an
ear deafening cheer. His enthusiasm, his words had such power and
fanaticism they swept away every trace of scepticism within me. I am
convinced that Hitler, and the nazi party will lead us into a new
era, the greatest era of German history, that has ever, as of yet,
been seen.I raise my
voice with all those there tonight in saying “heil Hitler!”
Today is the 3rd
of March. It has a number and month, just like any other date, yet I
feel this one, like the day I was born, is not just another
insignificant number matched to a month. This day I will remember
and celebrate for the rest of my life. For, like the day I was born,
this day has brought a new beginning, has brought another spark into
the world. Today was the day I found a room full of soul mates,
today was the day I truly discovered the Nazi’s.
To me politics has
always been about a bunch of old fat men arguing over what the
penalty should be for stealing a loaf of bread. I have always felt
the political system has been biased against us women, and I have
never agreed with much the government or political groups have stood
for. Yet today it seemed the Nazi’s were different. I came along
just to see what it was all about, and since I lost my job teaching,
I haven’t had much to do anyway.
When Hitler stood on
the stage, with the audience cheering at him, watching this great
politician stand silent, looking at the crowd, I must admit I was a
bit sceptical. He just wasn’t saying anything, and I didn’t
understand why everyone was raving about him. Then he opened his
mouth, and from it rolled words, as clear as crystal, long live
Germany the motherland. Then patriotism washed over me, bringing me
into a fever, listening closely as his speech speeded up, gained
momentum, and the rhythm of his nationalism spurting out locked me
in a trance, hanging on his every word. The crowd swayed with the
awesome impact of his words, blowing them back a step, cheering all
the time as they were infected with nationalism from inside none of
them knew they had.
I have seen
politicians at work before, trying desperately to get an audience to
side with them. Indeed, I have worked as a speech writer for a time,
and have written the drivel they come out with. Before, I had
thought it was all drivel, until tonight. I have never seen anyone
put such expression to words, to believe absolutely in what they
were talking about, captivating audiences with abstract ideas of a
greater Germany to come.
He talked of a Germany
without the depression, without the poverty. He talked of a Germany
that respected their elders, supported them in their old age. This
was the Germany I wanted. Then he talked of the Novemberlings, and
tears came over me. Not due to the passion of his speech, but I had
lost my three brothers, father and2 uncles in that conflict. I was a supporter of it to the
last, and we could have won, yet we were stabbed in the back, and
forced to sign that piece of <rubbish> they called the Treaty
of Versailles, and Germany fell into ruin. He also talked of the
Jews, and a pure blooded Germany. I had never had anything against
the Jews, and had always strived to not be racist, but tonight I
came close to crossing over, as Hitler produced such convincing
arguments of how they were responsible for everything, it suddenly
seemed obvious they were responsible, and I was overcome with the
conversion to this streamlined way of thinking.
Listening to Hitler
was like reading a Bible, it just explained everything so simply and
just so, it is hard to disagree with. This country needs more people
like this, to get Germany off its knees and onto its feet, to
recreate what was once the world’s greatest empire. I had watched
Germany slowly fall apart, and become crippled, and I was not happy.
Hitler stood for the Germany of yester year, the Germany we all
remember with a future. I hope Hitler can bring that future back for
us.
I had never
believed, before, that anything could persuade me to change
my mind in only one evening. Now, for the first time, I shall have
to eat my words. I have just come back from the most eye opening,
exhilarating night of my life.Now, you know me, no matter how much of a mess our country
may have been in, I have never in my life taken the slightest bit of
interest in politics. It always seemed to be so distant from real
people’s lives and I never really believed that any of those
stiff-backed, weasel eyed old men that beg for our approval every
election year could really change anything. Until now. I don’t
know if I’ve ever mentioned him before, but there’s been an awful
amount of fuss about Adolf Hitler, the leader of the Nazi party,
everyone’s been talking about him, but I never took any notice
because, as I said, I can’t stand politics. Anyway, some of the
teachers at work are simply mad about him, just…inspired
by him and his ideas, so yesterday they talked about half the
staff into going with them to one of the Nazi rallies. I wasn’t
going to go, but I owe one of them a favour anyway.
When we got there,
the first thing I noticed was that it was just so big! I swear,
there must have been simply thousands of people there. It was
an amazing feeling, that we were all there for one, united purpose.
I changed a bit as soon as I got in – so did everybody. We were
part of one big body, no longer ourselves but all caught up in
breathless anticipation of what we would hear and see. Hitler was a
surprise, at first. He really is the most unattractive man but he
somehow commands respect, he is short but makes himself seem taller
by strutting importantly. As soon as he stood up on the platform, a
hushed silence fell like a blanket onto the crowded room.I felt it myself, and immediately looked up towards him. He
waited a long time before speaking and during his silence his bright
eyes scanned the room constantly, searching into the very souls of
each face in his audience. When his eyes met mine, I couldn’t look
away, I was drawn into him, by the belief in those eyes. I felt like
he was seeing deep into me, and it was very personal, as if I was
naked before him.
After what must
have been a full minute he started to talk, slowly at first, then
gathering rhythm and speed. Soon he was spitting the words out, fast
and furious, his eyes were now blazing inside his waxen face, sweat
dripping from all over him. He lent forward, as if to push himself
into the crowd. He lent so far over it seemed barely possible that
he could stand upright, but he never feared of falling, never. He
was so confident, not only in himself but in what he was saying, in
what he believed, that he enraptured every man and women in that
crowd. The one time I could bring myself to look away I saw all the
other faces were as mine must have been; mouths open, staring eyes,
flushed cheeks. This man had a vision; a vision of a better Germany,
he could save us all from what our proud, glorious nation had
become! He was generous enough to include us all in that vision, and
we all felt honoured.
It’s strange, but
I don’t really remember his exact words, they weren’t the
important bit I suppose. It was his expressions, his way of
talking that so impressed me. However, a lot of the things he did
say seemed to suddenly make sense. All those things about the
Jews…I was always so sceptical at first, when everyone started
hating them, but recently even I’ve changed my mind a little.
It’s just that they all seem to be doing so well out of all
this economic failure. It’s not fair, and there was that man the
other week that robbed me in the street, he looked very Jewish.
And Daddy always hated the Jews, he said that they did
nothing but steal good German’s jobs and take over the country
with their communist ways. There was one thing I completely agreed
with Hitler on – Communists. Those filthy creatures deserve to be
shot. It’s the Communists that got daddy’s firm shut down, he
said so himself, and it was because of the Communists in America
that we’re all in this mess. Hitler told us the Novemberlings were
Communists and Jews as well. I didn’t know that. I didn’t know
much about the whole betrayal of Germany with the treaty of
Versailles until tonight. Now I am very well informed, I know all
about how they all stabbed us in the back when there was every
chance that we might continue to win, they were just toadying with
those Americans, trying to get in with them.
I don’t know,
some people say Hitler is too extremist, but after tonight I can see
that our country needs someone extremist. If we don’t have
strong rules that are rigidly enforced, the Fatherland will fall
into the kind of hopeless despair we’re all in at the moment. I
hate this stupid depression as much as anyone – we barely ever get
paid and half the children are never at school because they’re out
foraging for food. I’d do anything to get out of here – I’m
terrified of losing this pitiful teaching job I have and Hitler
promised to bring down unemployment. In other politicians it may
seem a rash promise, but I truly believe this extraordinary man can
do it. He has the zest and passion that is just so lacking in the
dreary, monotonous faces I see every day on these streets. I have
decided tonight to join the Nazi party, not only because of the
beauty that I see in this glorious party but because I’m sick to
death of ill, tired, hungry, sad and downright miserable faces that
I see everywhere. Germany, this beautiful land that I love and
cherish, needs someone strong, someone to uphold those noble values
taught to me as a girl on my father’s knee. I believe that the
Jews and Communists (not to mention homosexuals and Negroes) are to
blame for an awful amount of what went wrong in Germany, and that
they should look elsewhere than Germany to live. I think its fair,
if not lenient – exile in return for ruining countless people’s
lives. I believe we need Adolf Hitler to keep Germany alive, and I
am prepared to join his party so I see my country survive and
emerge, stronger than ever, as the glorious nation and Empire I knew
when I was young.
I cannot sleep a
tiny bit! My head is still swimming with all the exciting things
I’ve heard tonight. I’ve just got back from an Adolf Hitler
meeting in the beer-hall that Franz dragged me along to, promising
me that after just ten minutes I’d be converted. Of course I had
just laughed. I’d heard a few of Hitler’s policies before and
hadn’t been overly impressed but oh my, I’m still trembling with
excitement. What an experience. This is it! This is the man we’ve
all been waiting for in our prayers to change Germany around to how
it should be!
On
our arrival, we were twenty minutes early for the meeting, but
already the benches and tables were packed with soldiers, doctors,
teachers, shopkeepers, the unemployed and the rich. There was a
tense, hushed atmosphere with a lot of low-key whisperings and
furtive glances towards the stage.
The
sound was that of a huge beehive filled with droning bees waiting
for their queen, and all of a sudden, an almighty roar began at the
front of the room, which quickly spread right to the back of the
hall and all of a sudden hundreds of people were on their feet
cheering and furiously waving their red and black swastikas so that
the room resembled a field of poppies blowing back and forth in the
wind.
I
stretched my neck as far as I could to see over the raucous crowds.
At last I spotted our saviour, the man himself.
On my first
impressions, I saw a small, weasel-like man standing at the podium
silent for a minute watching the crowd, us, pensively. He had dark
hair in a side parting and a distinguishable moustache, seen clearly
even from the back of the room. I couldn’t see his eyes very well,
but one sensed steeliness to them as he regarded the hoards of
appreciative fans. Finally he raised both his hands and immediately
the din hushed.
As
he began to speak, quietly and quickly, the people around me
strained their ears to hear his mutterings, but soon his voice had
grown louder and louder, clearer and angrier until his voice became
a hoarse shriek. His face was visibly purple and his fists were
clenched so hard his knuckles were white. He preached to us, told us
we were fighters, told us we were stronger than anyone because the
new Germany was about all of the German people uniting as one. He
would repeat his words over and over, driving his message into our
brains as effectively as a hammer and chisel. As I listened, I
glanced around me at the others to make sure I wasn’t the only one
being taken in but every single pair of eyes watched him fearfully
yet with utmost respect, and every now and then a few would nod in
agreement until the whole crowd had become comfortable enough to
regularly cry out their approvals. I soon found myself standing up
along with the others cheering and clapping, and I really meant it
because he meant it. He was amazing to listen to because he promised
such impossible things, yet was so sincere about it in his emotive
expressions that he persuaded us to believe that he can do it. That we,
the German people can do it.
Finally
it seems that somebody is going to help us after all these years and
whatever it takes to help him help us, then his people will be right
behind him, including me.
I
must tell Kristof to come with me next time. He says that he
doesn’t agree with Hitler’s policies, especially his
discrimination against the Jews (Kristof’s step mother is Jewish)
but I know he will agree that the man is incredibly interesting and
has a powerful presence about his words.
I’m
writing this by candlelight and my wrist aches and my eyes itch, but
I must write all of this down, just to put my thoughts in order. My
mind won’t be so cluttered in the morning and I’ll be able to
make sense of what I saw tonight.
I’m
so hopeful, so desperate for this man to be right about the future.
If he does half of what he says he will do, then Germany would be
able to get out of this economic slump and unemployment levels would
drop. It would mean that my future children would grow up in the
tall and proud Germany that I once knew as a child. We have all
spoke of revolution before but nothing has ever rang so clear than
when the words were screamed out hoarse by Hitler. Do we dare? Yes,
we dare because he dares. He makes it so graspable, that as
he shrieks, we see what we want right there in front of us, close
enough for our outstretched hands to grab. He dares to
because he believes, and if he believes then we can believe, we can
believe his promises, his painted stories, his frustration, because
he is just one of us, a citizen Of Germany, but it is only he who
the strength, the determination to lead us. For years we have stood
in the dark, surrounded by poverty and unhappiness and this man
appears to be the shining light at the end of the tunnel. We shall
follow the light, we shall stand behind you sir all the way because
Germany must be Free! Germany WILL be Free!
Listening to Herr
Hitler tonight gave me unjustified feelings about the world around
me. How can one man change the beliefs of thousands of people in a
space of just one evening? The answer to this question is simple:
his ideals match those of the German people who have been hurt by
moral wrongdoings over the past few years, not only by their enemies
around the world but by those who also call themselves
“Germans”. Today I have seen my fellow companions, the sceptics
that they were, drop all their beliefs for a better, more peaceful
world, and instead listen and trust Adolf Hitler and his treacherous
ideas, which I am sure will lead them astray in the least. But he
hasn’t got me, no, I am more clever than my friends and
fellow countrymen. I can see past Hitler’s clever remarks and
persuasive tactics, I can see the weak and vulnerable man he is
beneath, and I know that even if he gains the respect of the whole
of Germany and Austria put together, he won’t get me. And those
ideals of the Nazis, and the craziness they bring with them, are
only going to bring this nation into trouble. I mean, look at the
violence he brought into Munich on the day of the Beer Hall Putsch.
People died that day.
I listened to his speech
intently this evening, mainly to come to the conclusion about the
things I had heard about this man. My cousin and his wife, having
listened to Hitler just one week ago, are now ‘proud members’ of
the Nazi Party. They have told me that they will do anything to help
him, anything at all, even if it calls for ‘drastic measures’. I
don’t really know what they mean by this, but I hope that they
don’t get hurt as a result of their support for Hitler. And I
don’t know how he came to win over my cousin and my friends. They
all have hearts and minds as strong as mine, yet they seemed to drop
all their morals just because of what one man said in his speech.
And although I was listening closely to his words tonight, they did
not have the same effect on me as they did on most of the other
people in that meeting place. I was sitting next to a reporter, who
was making notes the entire evening. Every so often, I would glance
down at his note pad to see what he had written. I could see that he
was positive that he would not become a supporter, either, but by
the end of the night he had raised his arm in a salute to the
speechmaker with the rest of the audience, and together they chanted
“Heil Hitler, Heil Hitler” over and over again. Soon it was too
much for me to bear. I got up and walked out, and was soon joined by
about 5 others, also determined to resist Hitler’s ‘hypnotic
appeal’. In an audience of a few thousand, six of us were strong
enough to come through without being ‘captured’ by the lure for
power and domination from the Nazi Party. How ironic.
Again and again I have
been thinking about the things he said this evening. Some may say
his heart is in the right place, wanting to restore Germany’s
pride and reverence, but I don’t know how he is going to be able
to come about them without bringing this country to shame. His
piecing, shrieking voice is going to haunt me tonight as I sleep. My
dreams are going to be filled with his brash hand movements slapping
me for hating him and his ideals. And most importantly, Herr Adolf
Hitler has caught me, so to speak, because now I am still thinking
about what he said tonight, and that is what he wants.
I’ve
returned from the rally. I must say, I am compelled to tear up my
previous diary entry after what I have heard tonight. This Hitler
person is not at all the man I had thought him to be at all. I feel
truly converted. Yes, it does feel strange that only several hours
ago my companions were dragging me to a beer hall to listen to a
delusional man raving about a ‘better Germany’, and how the
country’s problems was all the fault of the Jews. This was all
nonsense to me. I was just a schoolteacher; how did the views of
Hitler have any appeal to me? When I entered
the beer hall, I wasn’t too surprised. A rowdy gathering of men,
drinking their ale in the middle of the room, while the women stood
on the outskirts. I say ‘stood’ but there was hardly any room to
stand. I found my friends dragging me by the arm into this swarm of
drunken Germans. When we had got to as close to the front as we were
going to get, I felt frustrated. I understood that we were half an
hour late to the gathering, and had expected the rally to start by
then. It took another thirty minutes for Hitler to come on stage. To be honest, I
don’t think many people noticed Hitler’s entrance. He just stood
there, until the room was quiet. In the time that it took for hush
to fall, I started at Hitler. He seemed unshaken, unstirred. It
appeared that he could have anything thrown at him, and still stand
tall. When the room was still, Hitler started to speak. He had the
whole crowd in his grasp from the moment he started speaking, as if
there was an invisible bond between him and the crowd. This bond,
Hitler’s grasp, became stronger as his speech went on. His words
had a surprising effect on me. He went on about the unemployment in
the Germany. He talked about the reasons for Germany’s frailties;
the Jews, the communists, the November criminals who robbed the
homeland of its pride. Something that really surprised me, was that
unlike other politicians, Hitler was not making promises. What he
really wanted was the best for his country, and he sounded truly
sincere about it. This person wasn’t some kind of con man. He
wasn’t controlling the crowd by some kind of hypnotic technique.
The people standing in the crowded hall listened to what he was
saying with anticipation. They wanted to hear what was going to
happen next. Some of the things he was saying I found (to my
surprise) were directly relevant to my situation in life. Over the
last few years, many of the pupils in the class had been dropping
out of school due to financial reasons. Hitler said that in an ideal
Germany, everyone would be able to get a job to feed the hungry
moths of their family. When he shouted
his last words, and walked of stage, everyone in the room burst out
in applause, even myself. I haven’t really been interested in
politics before now; but after hearing what Hitler had to say, I
knew he was definitely getting my vote next year.
Tonight
I have been to a rally of the Nazi party. I couldn’t sleep so I
decided to write this account on tonight’s events and my current
thoughts and feelings. The rally was truly inspirational. Strangely
I have never been interested in politics before now, however the
meeting I had has changed my mind completely. I have decided that I
will in the future support the Nazi party. Earlier tonight I walked
into the hall as many other people had before and after me. The main
focus of my visit was to see a certain Adolf Hitler, who had gained
a lot of fame throughout Germany these last few months.
Hitler’s
speech was amazing. The power he had over the people throughout the
hall was eerie; I couldn’t understand how he managed to gain so
much power in such little time. After all I had heard about Hitler
and what he had achieved and what where his aims I couldn’t help
but want to meet him. But I didn’t expect anything like this, it
was beyond my imagination, it was almost as if he has taken control
of the people in the room. We waited for anything up to ten minutes,
maybe 20, the atmosphere he created had made time become not and
issue anymore you could not tell how long you were there waiting. He
just stood there and said nothing. It was strange how people
didn’t take this as ignorance and dismiss him immediately, but
there was something about him that made people stay. After the long
wait he began to talk. The way he spoke, such power that he
displayed. He spoke so harshly and powerfully of his aims to restore
and create a better Germany. He made everything sound so convincing
you just couldn’t by being attracted by the way took control and
expressed his ideas. The ideas that he expressed he didn’t just
say he made them be felt throughout the hearts of every man and
woman in that room at that moment.
It
was simply unbelievable how one man was able to grab so many peoples
attention and impress in so short amount of time, but not just
impress, no, he did more than that, he amazed, astounded, I don’t
know, there is not a word in German, English, or any language that
can describe how much he managed to impress tonight. The element of
surprise I suppose is another thing that made me more amazed than
anything. It was not just the use of the words and the things he
talked about, it was the fact that what did I really expect as I
went into that hall. Just another speech I thought. Well, was I
surprised? Very. His speech was more than I had bargained for,
Hitler the new chancellor of Germany. Maybe I could get used to that
over time. He could be a great leader. But many still have doubts in
him, some of his ideas do sound a little extreme. But we will see.
Hitler’s
power by the end of his speech had reached an extreme I couldn’t
have imagined, all the others in the room including myself were
cheering for him, running through our heads what it could mean for
Germany and its people if Hitler were to take over, how much he
could do for them and how could restore Germany’s pride back to
the way it was before the was and make Germany the country that
everyone feared once again. That is what they wanted, they all
wanted it, they wanted Hitler, a leader that Germany could trust to
return Germany’s pride.
The
huge crowd that now stood in that room where I was were shouting and
cheering for Hitler, as Hitler stood down and left the high place
from where he stood, looking as if he shadowed over the other
humans. We were cheering for him. Many more had joined form the
street and stood by the entrance since Hitler had begin his speech.
It was the most inspiring experience I had ever had and the most
amazing speech I had ever witnessed.
I
walked home after the speech, nothing on my mind except what Hitler
had said he was our saviour. Nothing could’ve prepared me for what
I was going to see that night and I think that everyone else was
thinking pretty much the same. But what an amazing speech he made,
one that I will never possibly forget.
