Revolution of nihilism. National socialism and political realism in Hermann Rauschning’s thought

Abstract

The article deals with the political realism of Hermann Rauschning. Briefly discussing the historical backgrounds of Rauschning’s views, the theory of political realism with its version in the German author, the distinction of two types of realism, and the compilation of theory and practice. The author wanted to emphasize the defensive character of the Rauschning’s realism aimed at defending the state of possession before the National Socialist revolution. Rauschning did not require realists to create new approaches- it was based on the premise that continuing the policy of peaceful development of relations between
states would sustain a prosperous situation. In the topic of two types of realism, Rauschning listed the perfect realism, based on the previously mentioned defense of state of possession and national-socialistic realism, which was based on subordinating the rules of political action to abstract purposes. According to Rauschning, such action distorted the sense of realism, because on the one hand it blurred the boundary between real policy conditioning and ideological flattening; On the other hand, it provided the opportunity to pursue a political scenario that was incompatible with the vital interests of the community, which fell under the jurisdiction of the authority. The author also listed extensively the dangers associated with the distorted use of the determinants of the theory of realism, which led to the loss of primordial significance by universal political concepts.