Evening star., 1952-05-14
German Youth Today
Seen Living Mentally
Outside Of Society
BY Dorothy Thompson

IS going on in the mind of Ger
man youth-the generation, say,
between the ages of 18 and 30?
These young people were be-
tween five and II years old when
the war broke out, and in their
lives they have seen nothing but
war. defeat. revelation of bestialI
inhumanities. experience of death
and destruction, division of their
country, its occupation by four
separate governments and armies,
with kaleidoscope of contradic-
tory policies and reversals.
OF course, it is extremely diffi-
cult for a member of an older
generation, and foreigner att
that, to read the minds of the
younger generation anywhere. The
most one can look for are Symp-
toms. from which one may, per-
haps. make certain tentative gen.
eraliZations.
X
am fortunate, for the sake of
such a research. that I have
friends in Germany. women espe-
cially. mothers of young people in
these age groups. One can also
learn something about them from
talking with their teachers and
professors. A friend, who is a \
remarkable woman with a young
daughter in wide circle of
friends. assembled for me on a
quiet Sunday afternoon some IS
or 20 Of them for a serious talk
as far as it went. All I met were
either university students or re-
cent graduates. The actual work.
ing lives they were preparing for,
or already engaged in, were as /
many as their number.
can only report on this one
class-though it is a great error
to think of any of them as men,
berS of a social or economic class. /
War. defeat, destruction leveled
all social classes in Germany.
AS for their political and social
backgrounds-one of a group with
whom drank tea was a former
active Nazi Party member: he had
fought and been a prisoner of war
in Russia, and he was staff Off
Ger in his 20s. The parents Of his
best friend had spent several years
of the war in a Nazi concentration
camp for their liberal views; the
parents of some others had been
rich, living in handsome villas,
and were now happy to occupy
three rooms with a bed in every
room.
I like young people and I think
invite honesty. What struck me
about them. as whole group, was
for young people, curious
dispassionateness. They seemed
to be living mentally outside of,
existing society. I found only one
with a fixed political belief; he
was a student and a MARKHAM
Socialist. though Communist.
The former Nazi was completely
dispassionate about Russia. He de-
scribed the various stages Of his
imprisonment and the changing
policies that had been adopted
from time to time toward war
prisoners. He insisted that the Rus
SLAMS had a general policy, how
ever. They had released the sick
and wounded first: then the en-
listed men; then the minor Off
GERS; finally the higher staff Off
GERS, and former members Of the
German police, whom they were
most reluctant of all to send back
to Germany. for they held them
chiefly responsible for the perse-
cution of German Communists.
The administrative officials were
decent. he said; the politicals,
who were constantly interfering,
were hard to take.
The prisoners were regularly
1ectured to. For a short time there
were lectures on historic German
Russian friendship and the "Bis-
marck" policy, but that was soon
abandoned. for straight commu-
nism. He was not sure whether
that was policy or due to the fact
that the earlier lecturers were
rather weak on historical facts.
Prisoners who expressed sympathy
for communism won favorS and
some Of these were dismissed ear
lier. perhaps in the hope that they
would plead the Communist case
on their return. The former pris-
oner thought this illusory. '"They|
were only opportunists. All armiesI
did the same thing" he remarked.
GAS long as one wears the uniform|
of ones country and army, one
should be true to it.
THE Russian Army was less
6pn0nrotio fhon tho Hsory,1o,, l,o