Fragen

1. In the conclusion of the book about Weimar, it is discussed how open minded people seemingly were about new liberal movements and  ideas. I find it interesting that this seemingly open minded, creative, and progressive group of people could so quickly shut down under Nazism. Why do you think this was? Was it perhaps that the threat of punishment or misfortune from the Nazis was great enough that anyone who might have dissented did not, or because the radical right wing was far louder than any dissension could be? I'm interested in learning about this because it just seems strange to me that German society as a whole could go from being culturally vibrant and open minded to submissive and closed off.

2. Many of the cultural movements we have studied ended quickly after the Nazis took power. Do you know if choking off the artistic community was one of the initial steps they took when they came to power? Did many of the artists of the time move elsewhere to continue creating, or did they bow to pressure to stop altogether? I am interested in this because I know some artists went on to America and France and other places, and I am curious to know if that case is an exception or if most artists just stayed behind in Germany and waited out the war.