Ordinary Men
Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland
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Ordinary Men
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Narrated by:
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Kevin Gallagher
About this listen
“A remarkable - and singularly chilling - glimpse of human behavior...This meticulously researched book...represents a major contribution to the literature of the Holocaust." (Newsweek)
Now available in audio for the first time, Christopher R. Browning’s shocking account of how a unit of average middle-aged Germans became the cold-blooded murderers of tens of thousands of Jews - now with a new afterword and additional photographs.
Ordinary Men is the true story of Reserve Police Battalion 101 of the German Order Police, which was responsible for mass shootings as well as round-ups of Jewish people for deportation to Nazi death camps in Poland in 1942. Browning argues that most of the men of RPB 101 were not fanatical Nazis but, rather, ordinary middle-aged, working-class men who committed these atrocities out of a mixture of motives, including the group dynamics of conformity, deference to authority, role adaptation, and the altering of moral norms to justify their actions.
Very quickly three groups emerged within the battalion: a core of eager killers, a plurality who carried out their duties reliably but without initiative, and a small minority who evaded participation in the acts of killing without diminishing the murderous efficiency of the battalion whatsoever. While this book discusses a specific Reserve Unit during WWII, the general argument Browning makes is that most people succumb to the pressures of a group setting and commit actions they would never do of their own volition.
Ordinary Men is a powerful, chilling, and important work with themes and arguments that continue to resonate today.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2017 Christopher R. Browning (P)2020 HarperAudioListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about Ordinary Men
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Paul c
- 24-02-22
Chilling read
Very shocking account. Gripping story and one of the most intense holocaust books I have read so far. A must for anyone interested in the plight of the Jewish people in ww2.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- Anonymous User
- 16-07-20
an interesting study
the book is memorable and interesting. although some of the insights perhaps could have been gotten to faster and with less repetition of atrocity description.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Cato Furum
- 30-09-23
New, shocking insights
Absolute a must-read for those wondering about how minds can be captured in the service of evil.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- M Bradley
- 29-09-23
A stunning insight into the atrocities of WWII
Insightful, brilliantly researched and terrifying how ordinary men were made to commit atrocities with such ease it would seem.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- Hugo I.
- 06-12-23
Mixed pronunciations
The book itself was interesting and what I had expected, but the poor pronunciation of German words had a cringy effect.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Anonymous User
- 15-01-22
a dark, dark, dark book
you've heard the stories... but you don't know how you could become a killer. it's easy really, so easy that it might make you change.
it might make you realize that the things you do matter. every choice matters. or maybe you'll just go about your day. it's up to you to decide.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- miles jones
- 06-05-20
good listen
An interesting and informative listen for anyone fascinated by the final solution and the second world war
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Agility E.
- 31-08-21
Necessary Reading
The first 17 chapters are about the graphic incidents of the holocaust. Then comes the most interesting part, the analysis which really questions one's conformity in life!
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Kiy Lockley
- 03-08-20
a must have!
I came here hoping to learn how men were able to become monsters, and have left with new knowledge of the holocaust that wasn't taught in school , that the gas chambers were only a part of the atrocities enacted on the jews. what mankind is capable of is truly shocking!
this is a fascinating title, and I can wholeheartedly recommend it anyone , looking for a little perspective
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Chris P.
- 18-01-22
Important
A very important book that more people should read. It makes you confront uncomfortable truths about human nature.
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