Propaganda

The caption reads “Here my little one, you get something very sweet, but as a reward you both must come with me.” This caricature portrays an elderly Jew trying to poison small children with candy. It relies on one of the basic fears of all parents and the common instruction to little children not to take candy from a stranger. There are links between “a stranger,” “danger,” and “a Jew.” The Jew is portrayed as a dark, evil, threatening, manipulative, stranger, as opposed to the innocent, pure, naive, Aryan children.

The caption in this picture reads: “Whenever you see a crucifix, think of the horrible murder of Jesus by the Jews.”

The Nazis used this common belief among Christians to further alienate Jews. Nazi ideology, however, was against all religions and viewed Christianity as a transferred form of Judaism. Some Aryan symbols appear in this picture including the bright hair, the connection to nature, children, and the continuity of race.

The inscription in this picture reads: “The Jewish nose is wide at the end and looks like the number six…”

The number six is connected to Satan and this explanation of the “Jewish nose” gives it a devilish meaning. Even though the message of this caricature is of a mythological nature, it is presented as truth in that it is being taught by a respectable Aryan teacher in a normal class. It can also refer to a situation known by the children in 1930s Germany when special instructors came to their classes to explain Nazi racial ideology.

Illustration from a German antisemitic children's book titled "Trust No Fox in the Green Meadow and No Jew on his Oath" (translation from German). The headlines depicted in the image say "Jews are our misfortune" and "How the Jew cheats."

Germany, 1936.