They Thought They Were Free
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Average rating4.2
Nazi Germany Through Everyday Eyes: Understanding Compliance in Tyranny
They Thought They Were Free examines the lives of ten ordinary German men under Nazi rule, revealing how they rationalized their support for the regime. Through postwar interviews in a pseudonymous town, Mayer explores their perceptions of freedom, morality, and complicity, offering a chilling study of how authoritarianism takes root in daily life.
It blends personal narratives with ethical inquiry, probing how fear, opportunism, and incremental normalization enabled widespread acceptance of atrocities. Its 2017 reissue includes historical context about postwar Germany’s militarization, underscoring enduring questions about individual responsibility in oppressive systems.
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Some tremendous sections in here. A chilling read in November 2023, 85 years after Kristallnacht, when a small group of Nazis marched down State St in Madison, Wisconsin yesterday. The back third of the book trying to suss out the “German” character doesn’t hold up well at all, but the first 15 chapters are full of insights and recognizable people who fill the MAGA movement here.
