Belonging to The Body of The Nation: Gender, Race, and The Volksgemeinschaft in Hitler Youth Magazines, 1933–1938

Abstract

Abstract: This article examines how Nazi children's magazines used emotional narrativization to create and sell fantasies about gender, race, and the Volksgemeinschaft [people's community]. These magazines are neglected sources on Nazi print culture; their content and context add to our understanding of child indoctrination. Children's magazines had no Jewish characters in their stories, while dark-skinned, non-Aryan peoples were culturally appropriated and caricatured to create power fantasies. This article argues that through compelling narratives, hegemonic masculine traits were fetishized and glamorized to appeal to young boys in order to prepare them to serve in both the Volksgemeinschaft and the army.