All Germans Are Nazis: Difference between revisions

'''Dude''': Walter, they weren't Nazis. They kept saying they believed in nothing. They were [[Nietzsche Wannabe|nihilists]].|''[[The Big Lebowski]]''}}

Strangely enough, there is no "All Italians Are Fascists" trope, even though Mussolini's ''granddaughter'' is a significant figure in national politics (and hers isn't the only ultra-nationalist party), nor an "All Spaniards Are Falangists" one even though that regime lasted into the 1970s. There isn't even an "All Japanese Are Militarists" either even though they were just as cruel as the Nazis and have an even longer history of militarism than the Germans. This is probably due to the fact that following [[World War Two]] the population basically revealed that Not All Japanese Are Ultra-Nationalists, instantly embraced Western morality and philosophy and made a 180 -degree turn into the hyper-peaceful, cute-loving neophiles we know today. This may have to do with the Nazis being so much more infamous than any other Fascists—mainly because of all the countries they invaded (Spain was neutral in [[WW 2WW2]], and Italy ''tried'' a bunch of invasions, but [[Axis Powers Hetalia|wasn't very good at it]]). Or perhaps because unlike other Axis nations, where only the leadership were tried for war crimes following the war, the official policy of the Allies was to assign [[wikipedia:Denazification#Collective guilt campaign|collective guilt]] to the German people for Nazi atrocities. This has, incidentally worked ''very'' well, and the German educational system is seen as an excellent example of how to get a country to recognize and come to terms with the nastier parts of its history. Some (particularly American military theorists, Eastern European leaders, and occasionally the French) say it worked ''too'' well, as it's given Germany a war-phobia that has occasionally threatened [[NATO]] missions and Western unity in general (the German "No" vote—as opposed to the expected abstention—on the [[United Nations]] resolution authorizing intervention in Libya was seen as particularly damaging; Nicolas Sarkozy in particular essentially told Merkel "[[What Were You Thinking?|what the hell were you thinking]]?" in response<ref>The German response was, "Hey, that was the Foreign Minister, acting against the advice of his underlings. The guy wanted to keep his party from losing the next election; what can we say.</ref>).

== Board[[Comic GamesBooks]] ==

* A [[Zig Zagged]] trope in ''[[Preacher (Comic Book)|Preacher]]'': Jesse Custer, the protagonist, befriends an old German WWII veteran. Initially it looks like {{spoiler|this trope is averted: the old man tells Jesse he merely did his duty during a time of war and was never a Nazi.}} But then we find out {{spoiler|he's lying: he actually was a member of the SS and killed many innocent people.}} However, the old man {{spoiler|now repents his actions and asks Jesse to absolve him, but Jesse refuses.}}

* Johann Schmidt, AKA [[Red Skull]], served as a former member of the Nazi Party during World War II in the Captain America comics and also pretty much every single medium (except the 1990 movie, where he was an Italian facistfascist whose only involvement with the German Nazis is his partaking in the Ubermensch project.)

== [[Film]] ==

* Averted in ''[[Casablanca]]'' and ''[[The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp]]}}'', two movies made during World War II, which have characters who are German refugees opposed to Nazism.

* Notably averted in [[Sam Peckinpah|Sam Peckinpah's]]'s 1977 movie ''[[Cross Of Iron]]''. Unlike most English-language WWII movies, this one actually depicts the war from the point of view of the German army, featuring German soldiers who are not particularly fond of either the war or the Nazi Party. Even though it's directed by Peckinpah and stars the American actor James Coburn (as a Wehrmacht corporal), ''Cross of Iron'' was an Anglo-German production based on a German novel, which might explain why its depiction of Wehrmacht soldiers goes far beyond two-dimensional Nazi stereotypes.

* ''[[The Monster Squad]]'' attempts to subvert this, but it actually comes across fairly straight. The neighborgoodneighborhood kids are all afraid of the "Scary German Guy" and suspect that he's a Nazi. It turns out that he's a kindly Jewish Holocaust survivor. So... all Germans are Nazis except the Jewish ones.

== [[Literature]] ==

* The ''[[Doctor Who]] [[Eighth Doctor Adventures]]'' feature a character called Fitz Kreiner, who, being half-German on his [[Extreme Doormat]] father's side, had an especially shitty childhood even by the standards of [[World War II|the era he grew up in]]. In what may be an example which tries to disprove the rule, he's forced to impersonate a Nazi at one point and it's an especially bad day for him in [[The Chew Toy|a lifetime of mostly bad days]]. There's also one book, ''The Year of Intelligent Tigers'', which takes place on a future Earth colony whose dominant culture is a mixture of German and Middle Eastern. It's a nice place... {{spoiler|if you ignore the oppressed [[Talking Animal|tigers]]. Also, the [[Beware the Nice Ones|surprisingly frightening]] [[One-Shot Character]], because a mass-murdering German/Iranian bloke is [[Sarcasm Mode|certainly not]] [[Unfortunate Implications|potentially offensive at all]].}}

* Played partly straight in [[Harry Turtledove]]'s ''[[Worldwar]]'' series. Many non-German characters refer to Germans as Nazis or "Nazi bastards". Despite some Germans clearly having issues with the official policy of the Reich, they never try to explain that they're ''not'' Nazis. [[Lizard Folk|The Race]], who don't care one way or another, just call all Germans "Deutsche".

* In the ''[[Law & Order|Law and Order]]'' episode "Evil Breeds", Briscoe and Green suspect an elderly German of murdering the victim of the week, who had survived a concentration camp, because she identified him as a guard and he was now threatened with deportation. As they investigate his apartment, the man's son accuses them of assuming this trope -- "Not every German was a Nazi!" ("Yeah, they were [[Just Following Orders]]," Briscoe replies.)

** A review of their album "Mutter" is the [[Trope Namer]] offor the subtrope [[Music to Invade Poland To]].

** And because there's no '"All <s> Russians</s> East Germans Are Commies'" trope, when they haven't been accused of being Nazis they've been accused of being communists, since they hail from the east side of the Berlin Wall.

* In ''[[The Saboteur]]'', one of the missions Sean does is rescue a spy for the people fighting against the Nazi'sNazis. It later turns out said spy is a full blooded German who is using his skills to help take down the Nazis. Sean invokes this trope by asking why he is fighting against his people, which the man replies that they are not his people, finding their actions despicable, and is tired of everyone stereotyping every German as so.

== [[Western Animation]] ==

* ''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]'' assumes this at times, too. In a Halloween episode, Homer is turned into a giant insatiable blob and starts eating people. He eats some (clearly 40-something, American) Germans at a German festival ([[Oktoberfest]]):

{{quote|'''German1German 1''': What did we Germans ever do to deserve this?

'''German2German 2''': [glares at German1]

'''German1German 1''': Oh, right. }}

* [[Meaningful Name|DolfsDolf]]'s parents in ''[[Alfred J Kwak]]'' are rather obviously German expies, and incredibly racist. Also, thiertheir son pretty much becomes ''[http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_vhmsi9ip6Xw/R3ZDs4QGswI/AAAAAAAABEU/P9ePYmSXC0g/s400/Alfred_Jodocus_Kwak_-_Dolf_de_Kraai.jpg freaking Hitler]''{{Dead link}} [http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_2yIzqUJ5zOE/RiJbl95XZXI/AAAAAAAAAAk/-Xqamwa96oI/s400/Dolf1.jpg later on].

* [http://www.theonion.com/articles/nazi-ss-cemetery-desecrated-by-prosemitic-graffiti,520/ This] ''Onion'' article] shows some elements of the trope.

* Completely inverted in modern-day Germany, where the [[No Swastikas]] rule is strongly in effect, and Holocaust denial is illegal. Germany actively defies this trope, as the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei is outright banned from elected office. The [[No Swastikas]] ban is so stringent that even ''crossed-out'' swastikas as part of a 'No Nazis' campaign were illegal for a time, though it was later ruled that such uses are legitimate as they clearly depict ''opposition'' to Nazism rather than support for it. Similarly, other exemptions exist for the use of the swastika such as for scholarly, artistic or historical purposes, provided they fall under the social adequacy clause. Video games weren't included in the social adequacy clause however, perhaps due to the perception that [[Pac-Man Fever|video games are more like toys for kids]] than as an art form in its own right; this was changed in August 2018 following a court ruling, and now games are allowed to be sold in Germany with Nazi imagery intact, provided they are given approval.

** [[J. R. R. Tolkien|JRR Tolkien]] was accused of this by [[Moral Guardians|certain people]] because of Norse themes in ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''. He was even approached by Nazi groups as a possible supporter, only to be decisively rebuffed. Apart from their politics, Tolkien also loathed the Nazis for the [[Unfortunate Implications]] with which they single-handedly brushed Germanic mythology.

** Arnold's father, Gustav Schwarzenegger, wasn't just a party member, he was a Stormtrooper. Arnold himself was accused of being a supporter of the Austrian far-right at one time. The Simon Wiesenthal Center, an organization Arnold had long supported, found no evidence that his father had been connected to any war crimes or the SS.

* Similarly, Pope Emeritus Benedict had numerous accusations and derisive jokes flung at him (e.g. a sketch in [[Charlotte Church]]'s TV show at Benedict's expense, [https://metro.co.uk/2006/07/24/charlottes-nazi-pope-blast-194135/ much to the consternation of Catholics] who also used to listen to her performances) due to his membership in the Hitler Youth as a child. (Most accusers conveniently forgot or overlooked that it was ''mandatory'' to be a member of the Hitler Youth in Nazi Germany ifonce you turn 14; the young Joseph Ratzinger had no choice but to comply even though he and his family, most especially his father, were ardently anti-Nazi, and he deserted his Wehrmacht post soon after the rightAllies age.)gained a foothold at his hometown) That he reminded everyone and his dog of [[Star Wars|Emperor Palpatine]] didn't help.

* This was assiduously averted in post-war propaganda films produced for American GIs stationed there, even while [[Anvilicious|heavily leaning]] on other [[Unfortunate Implications]]. It emphasized that Germans were not to be trusted ("They are not your friends!") due to warmongering drive for conquest, it avoided labeling occupied Germany '"Nazi'". By that time, [[Red Scare|Socialism]] was the bigger concern.

* Danish film-maker [http://www.deadline.com/2011/05/cannes-von-trier-goes-for-shock-value-says-he-sympathizes-with-hitler-a-little-bit/ Lars von Trier evidently believes this], with the corollary that his family being German makes ''him'' a Nazi, which he is rather proud of. His comments about that did not go over well at the Cannes film festival at all.

* Boxer Max Schmeling was considered to be a Nazi puppet during his heyday. His bouts with American boxers had strong "Nazism versus Freedom" overtones. This was particular noticeable in his fight with Max Baer, who chose to wear a Star of David on his trunks in defiance of Nazi anti-semitismSemitism even though he did not personally practice the faith. SchmelingsSchmeling's fight with the African-American Joe Louis had a similar tone. Hitler ''was'' interested in using Schmeling as a propoganda[[Propaganda piecePiece]], but his losses quickly got him dumped on the front lines. In reality, Schmeling was not a Nazi and even helped smuggle two Jews out of the country. He later befriended Joe Louis and was one of his pallbearers.

* Considering Germany [[What the Hell, Hero?|refusingrefused to let the EU bail Greece out of their economic collapse,]] this trope has seen a massive boost in Greece.

* Inversion. Saxons, who founded England and whose decendantsdescendants founded the United States were from Saxony, which is of course in Germany. Large numbers of Russians have ancestors who were German technicians and traders in the Czarist days. [[Yanks With Tanks|Guess,]] [[Brits With Battleships|which,]] [[Reds With Rockets|three,]] Great Powers were the major nations who were ''at war'' with the Nazis?

** In fact if you go simply by the Nazis own rather vague ancestral criteria, there were far more Germans fighting ''against'' the Nazis then ''for'' and that does not count the ones just trying to get out of their way.

*** And what do you do about German-Jews? Are they supposed to [[Sarcasm Mode|fight themselves?]]