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J667SP17 Layout Draft.Indd Germany’s Children: Marriage and Reproductive Policies under National Socialism during World War II B S S U V Introduction for women and to bring traditional Christian those policies and, as such, serve as a critical Th e Second World War and its eff ects values back into daily life, the National underpinning to the analysis. However, this on the German population were signifi cantly Socialist government of Germany redefi ned paper relies heavily on primary sources as well, aff ected by the policies concerningmarriage in a way that forbid so-called including speeches presented at Nazi rallies reproduction and marriage created by the deviants from participating in the institution. that touched on these reproductive policies Nazis. While Hitler planned from the Legitimate marriage in Nazi Germany was and fi rsthand accounts of the conditions beginning to recreate Germany in the image defi ned as: of life for German women. Specifi cally, of the perfect Aryan race, World War II A long-term relationship based on the Alison Owings’ book Frauen collects and exacerbated the burden on women to have mutual trust, love, and respect between two documents the stories of women who lived children. Essentially, this burden was two genetically healthy and racially identical through the Th ird Reich and illustrated the pronged: On the one hand, the high death people, of opposite gender with the aim emotions women felt and the incentives toll on the battlefront required a near- of conceiving genetically healthy Aryan women had to reproduce. Ultimately these constant stream of new soldiers to fi ght on children and raising them to be able-bodied primary sources showed women’s reactions to behalf of Germany. For Hitler, this meant national comrades.3 Nazi reproductive policies and conveys how that women needed to have more children so All of these elements – marriage, the women perceived the impacts of those that they could replace those lost in battle.i In nationalism, and child bearing – are policies in their own lives. a speech given at the National Socialist Party important in understanding the politics of Germany’s (NSDAP) Congress, Hitler of gender under Nazism. Ultimately the Weimar Era proclaimed, “the goal of female education Nazis based their gender policies on the idea Th e Weimar Era identifi es the German must invariably be the mother.”1 Th e Nazis that motherhood was the only proper role state between the end of World War I in believed that a formal education for the sake for women in Germany. Th eir legislation 1918 and Adolf Hitler’s appointment to of education, or with the hopes of one day regarding sex and sexuality, education, and Chancellor in 1933. Th is period is defi ned having a career, was unnecessary. Th e only the workforce was intended to encourage by a progressive German republic, replacing purpose women served was as mothers, reproduction and motherhood and acted its previously imperialist monarchy. More and education was only necessary to the as a disincentive for women to seek out specifi cally, the tension between the Social extent that women used it to raise a better alternative lifestyles. Democrats and the Communists, the two generation of Germans. Gender as an analytical category helps dominant parties in Weimar Germany, At the heart of many Nazi social policies, explain the life and culture of the average centered around how to best carry out these including those focused on regulating German person during the war. Th is paper progressive changes. Th e Communists, in reproduction and sex, was a desire to will explore Nazi gender policies and their true Marxist fashion, looked to Russia and incorporate traditional Christian values. attitudes towards sex, reproduction, and believed that violent revolution and combat Generally, these tenants of Christianity marriage as they existed between 1939 and were necessary and the only ways to truly included female subordination, evasion of 1945. Specifi cally, it will discuss the positive eliminate the monarchy.iii. premarital sex, and out-of-wedlock births, eugenics project instated by the Nazis that Th e Social Democrats, a more moderate which Christians and Nazis alike saw as encouraged reproduction. Th is will shed party, believed political reform, would be a symptoms of an immoral society. Especially light on constructions of femininity in Nazi more eff ective method. Despite their diff erent coming out of the progressive and liberal Germany, after which it will attempt to show approaches to enacting social change, both of Weimar Period, Hitler and the NSDAP how these policies defi ned the roles women these groups, as well as the Nazi Party that saw an absence of moral values in German played in society at large and how they emerged towards the end of the Weimar Era, society. However, the Nazis’ relationship with translated to their participation in the war dealt with gender ideals. those Christian ideas was complicated, and eff ort. In order to understand these impacts, Th e Communist Party of Germany as a result, they often cherry picked which however, the paper will begin by briefl y (KPD) – a large minority in the political aspects of Christianity to adopt in their own reviewing gender policies under previous sphere – made the physically powerful, platform, while criticizing the Church for German governments and then contrast militaristic male proletarian the center of others.ii, 2 In general, the Church and the Nazi those with the changes made under National its politics, while women were rendered the party were engaged in a power struggle over Socialism. passive objects of capitalist exploitation and creating a properly moral society according Most of the evidence used in this paper proletarian sympathy.4 Th e KPD is important to their own platforms (which was certainly to support the thesis comes from secondary because, despite their minority status, one root of the tension between them) but analyses of Nazi reproductive policies and they still exerted quite a bit of infl uence in ultimately had similar visions for German of German culture and society under the terms of enacting progressive legislation; society. Th ird Reich. Th ey proved to be the most more importantly, they challenged the To encourage motherhood as an ideal effi cient sources for conveying the eff ects of conceptions of gender later presented by Journal of Undergraduate Research – Volume IX Social Sciences the National Socialists. Among many social important role for women was reproductive. The Nazi eugenics movement was twofold: reforms carried out during Weimar, several One major way by which the Nazi Party it had both a so-called negative and positive important policies specifically affectedtook steps to create a racially homogenous track. The negative track, simply, is the one gender and sexuality, namely an increased state was through its views and policies on we would most associate with the Holocaust access to birth control and legal abortions, sex and reproduction. The Nazis took a and eugenics in general. It was the forced which emphasized women’s sexual freedom.5 hostile approach to sex, denouncing it as a sterilization and murder of people perceived Despite the significant taboos that stillpleasureless act.5 By taking away the idea to be inferior. Essentially anyone who was existed regarding sex for pleasure at the time, that sex could be enjoyable at all, the Nazis gay, black, Jewish, mentally ill, a criminal, 72 million condoms were sold in Germany hoped that men and women would only or did not support the Nazi regime was to in 1938.5 Furthermore, the KPD equated engage in sex with the end goal of pregnancy be forcibly sterilized or sent to their deaths marriage with prostitution and defended so that promiscuity would disappear and the in concentration camps. The purpose was to single women’s rights to a sexual life.4 They need for birth control would be eliminated. end the continuation of these “degenerate” emphasized the importance of the full and Through propaganda campaigns, the Nazis races, prevent people with contagious diseases active participation of women in all realms were sure to emphasize sex’s utilitarianism; it and inherited disabilities from passing those of life and worked to integrate them into the had a specific purpose – reproduction – and problems onto a future generation, and, in the proletarian class struggle.4 This emancipatory engaging in sex for any other reason would be case of gays and lesbians, who could not have message, however, would not last long. shameful. Moreover, they greatly restricted children, to punish them for not breeding.6 While the Communists “asserted the access to birth control and completely Between 1934 and 1939, approximately full equality of men and women,” which forbade abortions, which removed the so- 320,000 people were forcibly sterilized, appeared in many of the policies passed called safety net for individuals practicing a figure which includes 5,000 “eugenic” during the Weimar Era, the Nazis would unsafe sex.iv, 1 As a result, Hitler hoped to abortions.1 Furthermore, from 1939 to come to reverse these changes. The Nazi eliminate non-reproductive sex. While that 1941 over 70,000 mentally and physically Party saw this as a problem leading to the is a difficult metric to gauge, the propaganda handicapped adults were murdered as so- corruption of German society They argued campaigns were at least highly successful in called “useless eaters” and “lives unworthy of that this corruption was a continuation of pushing this type of behavior underground life”.1 that perpetuated by the Jews.6 In order to so that it was no longer a cultural marker, the undo the changes made during the Weimar way it was during the Weimar Era.
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