It is no secret that the enemies in Star Wars have always been influenced by the real-life villains of our own history. Nowhere is this more apparent than the persistent use of Nazi imagery within the saga. […] and in the latest installment, The Force Awakens, the First Order continues the Nazi influenced totalitarian ideology of the destroyed Empire.
Finally, General Hux suggests to Supreme Leader Snoke that they use their new superweapon (housed on Starkiller Base) to destroy the New Republic before they can discover Skywalker’s whereabouts. Snoke agrees and Hux triumphantly stomps out of the room to prepare the new superweapon for its inaugural strike.
Outside Starkiller Base, ranks upon ranks of First Order troops have been assembled for the commemoration of the new weapon’s test firing. Row by row they stand as a proud General Hux towers above them, gazing out at the loyal army of stormtroopers he created from the ashes of the Empire. Behind him flutters a large flag of the First Order. Hux’s top generals stand nearby, watching with admiration and devotion.
As Adolf Hitler rose to power in Germany during the 1920’s and 1930’s, loyal Nazis would annually gather in the city of Nuremberg. It was there that thousands of supporters would fill the Nazi party rally grounds and Zeppelin Field to hear their Führer speak.
The enormous First Order flag draped behind General Hux mirrors this idea of Nazi regalia and propaganda. In fact, the circular red, white and black imagery of the First Order symbol recalls the swastika. Nazis often wore a left armband adorned with a swastika, a style officers of the First Order imitated by wearing a left arm patch of their symbol.
When compared, it is obvious how much influence the uniforms of the First Order took from the Nazis. Nazi officers commonly wore tunics with high collars, Jodhpurs or flared breeches, and knee-high leather jackboots. These uniforms are based on the ulanka, worn by German cavalry during World War I. A similar style is seen amongst the ranks of the First Order. Furthermore, the First Order’s use of all black uniforms evokes Hitler’s feared SS or Schutzstaffel that carried out most of his notorious atrocities.
Another striking similarity that carries over from the Galactic Empire is the use of stormtroopers. The term stormtrooper originated with German soldiers in World War I. […]
Although the First Order continues to use Stormtroopers, one important point of continuity is missing, the use of clones. Early in The Force Awakens, Finn reveals that stormtroopers are comprised of men (and women) who were taken from their families as infants and brainwashed or trained to be totally loyal to the First Order. Later, General Hux explains to Kylo Ren that his soldiers are “exceptionally trained, programmed from birth.”
In the days of Nazi rule, Hitler made great effort to ensure not only the endurance of his own idolization, but also the ideology of Nazism. To assist with this long-term goal, Hitler targeted and indoctrinated the German youth. Originally established in 1922 as the Nazi Youth (Jugenbund der NSDAP), the Hitlerjugend or Hitler Youth grew to become the primary youth organization in Germany during Hitler’s reign.
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