Inside the Mind of Adolf Hitler (1995) BBC Timewatch

Inside the Mind of Adolf Hitler

Timewatch producer David Stewart describes filming the story of the men who put the Führer on the psychoanalyst's couch at the height of World War Two. Making 'Inside the Mind of Adolf Hitler' wasn't a decision taken lightly. There's a very vigorous debate among historians about the value of psychological analysis in contributing to the understanding of any historical event. The problem for many is that the psyche of any individual is only one factor in how history unfolds. Moreover, any psychoanalytic approach in the historical context is fraught with difficulty. The primary problem is that the psycho-historian has no direct access to the individual under examination. Therefore, that analysis is fundamentally compromised. It's essentially second-hand. However, to deny the influence of the individual in shaping events is patently not sustainable. For example, the way that Nazi Germany was constructed and organised to some degree reflected Hitler's personality, drives and desires. How far it was driven by the force of this unique personality is the question.