If Hitler was inspired by Cicero instead of Nietzsche

(by Ömer Faruk Yalçın)

                                                                                                                           (1)
Philosophy does not only touch further philosophers, but inspires political leaders as well. Who cannot see the effect of Montesquieu’s division of powers in the French Revolution, Marxist ideology in Lenin’s, Mao’s, Stalin’s and Trotsky’s works or Nietzsche’s “übermensch” in Nazism? However, it does not mean that political leaders always have the capability of understanding philosophy and applying rules of philosophical systems.

It is common knowledge that Hitler was inspired by Nietzsche’s works when writing his book Mein Kampf and building his entire ideology of Nazism. In his study “Friedrich Nietzsche's Influence on Hitler's Mein Kampf,” Michael Kalish states (2):

Hitler's explicit condemnations of the slave race, his ravings about the Aryan elite, and his proposed Darwinist resolution, as well as Hitler's relationship to Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche and Richard Wagner signal a definite connection to Nietzsche's work.

What Hitler understood from Nietzsche’s work was the vision of an elite German race uniting the Europe and ruling the world. This was completely wrong reading of Nietzsche, according to Eva Cybulska (3). Though, regardless of reading Nietzsche wrong or right, Hitler followed his vision of the übermensch and caused millions of deaths in the Second World War.

The history cannot be studied hypothetically. However, it is quite interesting to think about how the world would be like if Hitler was not inspired by Nietzsche, but by Cicero.

Cicero claims that “no war is just unless it is waged after a formal demand for restoration or unless it has been formally announced and declared beforehand” (4). Thus, Hitler would not invade Poland against the Soviet Russia without asking for reformation or declaring war.

Actually, Hitler would obey the non-aggression Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact (5) between the Germans and the Soviets at the first place, since one ought to keep faith even in the promises given to enemies, according to Cicero (6).

He would not see non-Germans, Jews, homosexuals or communists any lower, but even if he did, since Cicero claims that “justice must be maintained even towards the lowliest,” he would not be known with his holocausts today (7).

“This photograph, which illustrates the adaptation of physiognomic measurement by Nazi ‘race scientists,’ was published on the cover of the Neue Illustrierte Zeitung on June 1, 1933, above the headline: ‘Who Is an Aryan? A Fascist Experiences the National Revolution.’” (8)

If Hitler was inspired by Cicero’s ideas on the “justice of warfare”, then he would not harm any civilians on purpose, thus there would be no concentration camps and Auschwitz would be a happy town with bright memories (9).

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Obviously, it is way too optimistic reading of the history to claim that a lot would be different if Hitler was not inspired by Wagner, Nietzsche or other, but was inspired by Cicero instead. With a social constructivist perspective, it can be said that many events and people affected Wagner’s and Nietzsche’s works, as well as many events and people affected Adolf Hitler to be a social Darwinist or to be inspired by the work of mentioned intellectuals. Nationalist trends, anti-capitalist movements, economic crises, anti-Semitism and many more had role in this part of the history. What to understand from here is that it is extremely important for leaders and everyone else to study philosophy very deep and carefully.

References:

  (1)Arepo, Sator. Walter Kaufmann: the Master Blame-Shifter. 12 April 2012. Last access 22 December 2013. Image. URL = <http://thinkclassical.blogspot.com/2012/04/walter-kaufmann-exercise-in-blame.html>.

  (2)Kalish, Michael. Friedrich Nietzsche’s Influence on Hitler’s Mein Kampf. June 2004. Last access 22 December 2013. URL = <http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/marcuse/classes/133p/133p04papers/MKalishNietzNazi046.htm>.

  (3)Cybulska, Eva. Nietzsche’s Ubermensch: A Hero of Our Time?. Last access 22 December 2013. URL = <http://philosophynow.org/issues/93/Nietzsches_Ubermensch_A_Hero_of_Our_Time>.

 (4)Cicero, Marcus Tullius, Miriam T. Griffin, and E. M. Atkins. On duties. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1991. Print. p. 15, 16.

(5)Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact. Last access 22 December 2013. URL = <http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Molotov%E2%80%93Ribbentrop_Pact.html>.

  (6)Cicero, ibid. p. 17.

  (7)Cicero, ibid. p. 18.

 (8)Unknown Artist. Who is an Arian? The Metropolitan Museof of Art. 1933. Last access 22 December 2013. URL = <http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/2003.308>.

  (9)Cicero, ibid. p. 14, 15, 16.

 (10)Auschwitz-Birkenau: History of a man-made Hell. Updated at 4 January 2010. Image. Last access 22 December 2013. URL = <http://www.scrapbookpages.com/AuschwitzScrapbook/History/Articles/Liberation.html>.