Can you help me pick a thesis for my research paper?

Question

I'm doing a research paper on Homosexuals and Nazi's.... the negative impact of the Nazi's on homosexuals. How it was for homosexuals before hitler, during and after...

Right now, i am going with "Homosexuals are more masculine than Nazi's".... does that sound okay for a 300 level class in a University? If not, what do you recommend? I have my sources (Gad Beck and Pierre Seel's books)....

Answer 1

"Homosexuals are more masculine than Nazi's" is probably inadequate because masculinity is an individual trait, and even as such, it is not well defined even within a culture. To try to state that homosexuals as a group are more or less masculine than another entire group, you have to have some way of backing it up, and you'll end up with personal attacks (ad hominems) and blatant opinions without any data to back them up.

Consider the following:

"The rise of homosexual rights advocacy and Nazism were parallel and sprang from similar cultural phenomena within early 20th century Germany."

"The Nazi approach to homosexuality sprang from its leaders' documented, intense self-doubts about their own masculinity."

"The purges of homosexuals within Nazi Germany harmed the arts under the Third Reich."

Or finally,

"Social Darwinism as a reflection of Nazi philosophy is inconsistent with the Nazi practice of exterminating homosexuals."

Answer 2

For some actual personal accounts of the Nazis, homosexuals, and the gay clubs of Berlin in the 1920's & 1930's rent the following documentary:

"Paragraph 175"

The name of the documentary is the penal code against homosexuals written in the late 1800's, but not harshly inforced until the rise of Hitler in the 1930's.

As a side note: even though the concentration camps were shut down, the known homosexuals were transferred from the camp to actual prison under Paragraph 175 until the 1960's. We were persecuted even AFTER the war and the fall of the Nazis.

Thanks for listening, I hope this helps. :-)

Answer 3

Just type "Hitler and Homosexuality" into your web browser. Short answer - Berlin in the 1930's had one of (if not the most) liberal and progressive attitudes towards homosexuality. Then Hitler and the Nazi's came along. You know how that ended...

Answer 4

Your thesis statement sounds more like an opinion rather than a revelation based on facts and research.

Answer 5

I like this thesis: Homophobes, including Nazis, are often closet homosexuals.

Answer 6

I think your idea is good, but your actual wording doesn't really seem appropriate for a research paper. You are trying a little too hard to be inflammatory, and you usually want to stick to the point.

Answer 7

No, it sounds like a joke. And a really bad one. Let me tell you something as a homosexual jewish man, you premise sucks. If you are going to approach this topic with any degree of credibility you are going to have to do a 180 on your approach.

Answer 8

How about trying something controversial like the new research by gay-rights leader Spitzer that shows that many gays can recover?

Answer 9

How the homosexuals are more masuline than Nazis...I don't see how that's relevant.