The Holocaust was a horrific and traumatic event that will serve for the rest of time as a reminder of the terrible atrocities that mankind can commit when put under vulnerable and desperate circumstances. While undeniably a disgusting event in human history, the causes of the Holocaust are often highly debated by historians all around the globe. The two prevailing schools of thought include the functionalist and intentionalist perspectives, the former emphasizing the complexity and confusion that existed within the Nazi bureaucracy and political system, and the latter emphasizing Hitlers anti-semitic and genocidal intentions (Pascoe 41-43). This essay seeks to answer the question, Which theory best explains the causes of the Holocaust? by suggesting that there is not merely one theory that completely encompasses all the reasons for the initiation of the Holocaust. Instead, the true causes of the Holocaust are best outlined in a combination of the functionalist and intentionalist perspectives, being that Hitlers genocidal intentions as well as the favorable political environment in Germany at the time bot
h played a substantial and highly interconnected role in the events that would transpire. By using the viewpoints of intentionalists such as Saul Friedlander and Andreas Hillgruber and contrasting viewpoints from functionalists such as Ian Kershaw and Raul Hilberg, while also highlighting examples of how the same pieces of evidence are interpreted differently by each school of thought, this essay will highlight the underlying principles behind both the functionalist and intentionalist theories and the strengths and limitations that each theory possesses. This research question is worthy of investigation in that the Holocaust was an atrocity committed by the Nazis that resulted in the extermination of millions of innocent Jews. Gaining insight into the reasons why such a horrendous event was able to occur at a relatively recent period in history can aid in our understanding of the flaws within the German government and bureaucracy at the time as well as the flaws within our current system of government so that a catastrophe at this large of a scale can be prevented from ever repeating itself in the future.