Word: stage
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Dates: during 1940-1949
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...Three Stages of Emotion. For the democratic world, Stage I was characterized first by the numb, sinking feeling of shock when a new Nazi invasion began; then by a few days of false hope that the campaign would go well, then by the despairing finality of another decisive defeat, finally by the return to a fool's paradise (e.g., the Phony War) until another Nazi invasion began...
...Stage II, the visceral feeling was quite different. With its emotions benumbed, the democratic world no longer expected anything but the worst. On June 22, 1941, when Hitler invaded Russia, most of the world took it for granted that Russia would crumble within a short time. But the worst never quite happened. The Russians were beaten and beaten and beaten-for 15 months. But the Germans could not crush them...
...Stage III, which began with the defense of Stalingrad, was almost Stage I in reverse. The Allied world tingled periodically to the announcement of new campaigns and invasions, even as the Germans had once tingled...
...Stage I the Wehrmacht was victorious because in every campaign it outclassed its opponent both in quantity and in quality, in manpower and in weapons...
...Odds. Stage II began when Hitler voluntarily gave up one of his advantages. At the onset of the Russian campaign, the Wehrmacht mustered about 150 German and Rumanian divisions to the Russians' 110. In armor and planes the Wehrmacht had even greater superiority. But a month later, in spite of having lost hundreds of thousands of men, Stalin had as many men in the field as Hitler. Hitler never again outclassed his opponents in manpower...