ABSTRACT
The history of everyday life under the National Socialists has been the subject of many studies in Germany over the last three decades. It is motivated by the need to understand how the party infiltrated all aspects of daily life and, more urgently, to let survivors of National Socialist racial and political terror give first-hand accounts of what they had experienced. This chapter focuses on gender-specific roles in relation to employment and career aspirations, and also on romantic expectations during the upheaval of war. It is only by examining how individuals reacted and tracing these ambiguities that one can begin to understand the phenomenon of German fascism. Maria H's letters reveal a deep ambivalence towards the gendered norms of National Socialism. They demonstrate the ambivalent feelings produced and also reveal how letters could be used to explore feelings and aspirations which were difficult to voice in person.
