Adolf Hitler's "Mein Kampf" Published Again
Mein Kampf , the legendary book written by Adolf Hitler, is being published again 70 years after the dictator's death.The Bavarian Institute of Contemporary History is reprinting the book and selling it for 59 euros.
At the end of World War II the United States and its allies gave the publishing rights to the state of Bavaria. Under European law, copyright expires 70 years after a person's death.
The original version of Mein Kampf was about 600 pages long. The reprinted edition will be about 2,000 pages long and contain an extended commentary.
Adolf Hitler wrote the book when he was in prison in the 1920s. In the manifesto he told readers what he intended to do with Jews and how he wanted to make Germany a world superpower. After Hitler's rise to power in 1933 the book became very popular. By the end of the war 12 million copies had been sold in Germany. Mein Kampf has been translated into 18 languages and sold in many countries, including the US.
Historians say that the reprinting of Hitler's manifesto could give the public more insights into the dictator's mind. It might also help people understand what went on in the Nazi era. On the other side Jewish groups are critical of the reprinting of the book. They say it could once again spark waves of anti-Semitism in Germany.
Related Topics
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- World War II
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Words
- Allies = the countries that fought together against Germany during World War I and World War II
- anti-Semitism = hate against Jewish people
- Bavaria = province in south-east Germany
- commentary = explanations that are in the book
- contain = to have in it
- contemporary = belonging to the present
- critical = to say how good or bad you think something is
- edition = copy of a book
- era = period of time in history
- expire = end
- extended = long and detailed
- intend = want
- historian = a person who has studied history
- insight = clear understanding of what goes on
- law = the rules of a country
- legendary = very famous
- manifesto = a written statement that says what a person or a party believes in
- mind = thoughts
- popular = much liked
- prison = to be locked up in a place because you have done something against the law
- public = ordinary people; people in general
- publish = to print and sell a book
- publishing rights = the permission to print a book
- reprint = print again
- rise = move up
- spark = start a movement
- translate = write the contents of the book in another language
- wave = sudden increase in certain actions