Między Gretchen a Walkirią. Model kobiecości w założeniach programowych i praktycznej działalności Bund Deutscher Mädel (1933-1945)
Between Gretchen and Valkyrie. The Pattern of Womanhood in the Concepts and Practice of the Union of German Girls (Bund Deutscher Maedel, BDM)

Summary/Abstract: The article presents one of the issues of the history of the Union of German Girls (Bund Deutscher Mädel, BDM) in the Third Reich. It concerns the pattern of womanhood promoted by this organization, both in concepts and in practice. The notion “pattern” used in the text means an ideal image of the female sex and relationships between the sexes, both in adolescence and in adulthood. This image is presented from the perspective of the different aspects of the activity of BDM members. The bearings considered in the study include: motives for joining the organization, personal examples of the female sex, the role of the uniform and the rituals as an identification instrument, “female” and “male” forms of activity, as well as a specificity of BDM in the processes of indoctrination and sexualization of its members. The text presents also the problem of the paths of career of the Union`s functionaries (Führerinnen). The source base of the article were diaries of the former members of BDM, after their critical analysis according to the principles of historical methodology.

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