The Husband: a National Socialist (Gone Bad)

In his article titled The Illusion of Escapism: Helmut Käutner’s Romance in a Minor Key, Marc Silbmerman describes Madeline’s unnamed husband as a representation of an ideal National Socialist. He writes, “In his antierotic conjugal life and his subaltern position, the husband represents the authoritarian personality that so readily accepted the dictates of German fascism” (85). This notion allows for an interesting analysis of the film, especially when considering Silberman’s previous assertion that the husband’s interest in gambling (presented as a flaw in his morality) subjects him to a world of risk taking. I find it very interesting that gambling is his central flaw, especially because his participation in a game of cards ultimately provides his wife with the opportunity to commit suicide.
On the one hand, it is difficult not to see the husband as an embodiment of National Socialism. He is humble and hard-working, and is certainly willing to accept his role under the authority of others. On the other hand, his gambling addiction allows one to see him in a different light, as a person who is almost, but not quite, the perfect National Socialist. Gambling, rather than enjoying time with his wife is often his number one priority. In the film’s opening scene, as the husband returns from a night of card playing, the spectator sees a husband so oblivious to his surroundings that he holds a (one-sided) conversation before realizing his wife’s unconscious and dieing condition. This obliviousness contrasts his orderliness and makes it difficult to determine whether or not this man is truly an ideal person according to Nazi ideals. Gambling has disillusioned him to the extent that he is no longer able to recognize such a drastic problem in his household.
I find the argument that the husband is an ideal National Socialist unconvincing, because a truly self-disciplined individual would have never gone away and gambled. Furthermore, he would have never had his life so drastically changed by outside and inferior forces. At one point, he expresses his desire to gamble through statements such as, “I am itching to play,” emphasizing his inability to fight off his risky desires. I think that the husband must be seen more as a representation of what can happen when National Socialist ideals are not entirely upheld, as he is ultimately punished by losing his wife. A real National Socialist would have had the self-discipline to have seen everything coming, or rather, would have never been at risk for such misfortunes, especially at the hands of other less than ideal individuals.