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The Man Behind the Nazis’ Propaganda
A terrifying combination of intelligence and villainy
Manipulating the minds of the public is a hallmark of radical regimes. Stalin’s Russia, Mao’s China, Franco’s Spain, and Hitler’s Germany were all rife with censorship and propaganda.
When it comes to the latter, Joseph Goebbels was the man who oversaw the manipulation of German society. Using his considerable intellect, he influenced the public by injecting them with racist ideas and portraying Hitler as the national savior.
A Deformed Genius
Goebbels was odd from the moment he was born. As a small and sickly child, he was physically inferior to his school peers, and matters weren’t helped by his clubfoot, which left him with one leg shorter than the other.
This led to a fair amount of bullying, but Goebbels made up for his physical shortcomings by throwing himself into academic pursuits. He was an intelligent youngster, capable of outperforming his classmates, and he wasn’t afraid to challenge his teachers as well.
Literature, philosophy, and religion were Goebbels’ primary interests. He earned himself a place at Heidelberg University and wrote his doctoral thesis on Wilhelm von Schütz, a German author known for his romantic stories.
