A Tormented Childhood Leads to a Life of Anger

Obviously, Hitler wasn't a fun-loving, young child when growing up in  Austria-Hungary. After reading an article from the New York Times analyzing the connections between Hitler's dysfunctional childhood and his actions later in life, it is quite clear to me that much of Hitler's crimes against humanity may have never occurred had he had a different home life. The article goes on to explain that Hitler grew up with a violent father who often beat both his mother and him. This combined with Hitler's confusion about his sexual identity, gave Adolf a fear of weakness. Even though there was resentment towards his father for the pain that he caused both him and his family, Hitler always looked up to his father's masculinity. There is no way that Hitler's lack of self-confidence and low self-esteem were simply coincidences based on how his life turned out. His struggling artist stage was him embracing his more feminine and sensitive ways. When that failed, he gave up on embracing himself. He wanted to prove to himself that he could be tough and strong. After being bullied his whole life, it was his turn to bully. And that he did. Hitler wanted a masculine identity, no weakness, no failure. He got so caught up in proving to himself that he could be an authority, and that he could be a man, that he ended up changing the world for the worst. So can we go as far to say that if Hitler's father had spared his wife and son of a beating, that our world as we know it would be without World War II? Possibly.