From my childhood, obedience was something I could not get out of my system. When I entered the armed services at the age of 27, I found being obedient not a bit more difficult than it had been during my life to that point. It was unthinkable that I would not follow orders.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The speaker describes obedience as a deep-seated habit formed in childhood and reinforced in military service.
- In plain terms
- I was taught to obey early and found it hard to stop.
- What can you take from it?
- Obedience becomes a habit that overrides personal judgment.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How does habit influence choice?
- When should obedience end?
Another view
Obedience may conflict with moral responsibility.
More from Adolf Eichmann
Obeying an order was the most important thing to me. It could be that is in the nature of the German.
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