Wernher Von Braun: A Character Analysis

           Wernher von Braun was infatuated with rockets and space travel, even from a very young age, the stars encapsulated him. Von Braun was an Operation Paperclip scientist following WWII, he was a tall, handsome, dark haired German, who loved rockets and always wished to travel to space. In Robinson J Ward’s “Dr Space: The Life of Wernher Von Braun” he speaks on von Braun’s early infatuation with space, “At age fifteen he read a science fiction article in an astronomy magazine that ignited his zeal to make rocketry and space exploration his life’s work.” Ward goes on to include quotes from von Braun himself regarding the magazine stating “It filled me with a romantic urge. Interplanetary travel! Here was a task worth dedicating one’s life to  (Ward 1)!” Several other sources tell of von Braun’s early love for rockets, such as in Erik Bargaust’s book “Wernher von Braun” where he speaks of Wernher’s novice days of rocketry, “There was a time in Berlin when Wernher and I set off firecrackers that landed in a fruit stand and ruined some perfectly good apples. As punishment, your grandfather made us stay at home for two days. On the third, Wernher went out and launched another rocket—this one into a bakery (Bergaust 1).” This is not only a testament to von Braun’s determination but also to the infatuation he had for rocketry and his desire for space travel even from a very young age.
            Despite all the contributions he made to rocketry and aeronautics as a whole, von Braun had the blood of thousands of people on his hands. From the nearly 10,000 Jewish laborers who died during the manufacturing of the V-2 Missiles to the thousands of Londoners killed during the bombings, those lives were lost because of the work of Wernher von Braun (V-2 Missile | National Air and Space Museum). According to a journal entry by lead researcher and writer on von Braun, Michael J. Neufeld, titled “Wernher von Braun’s Ultimate Weapon” as well as many other sources, “Von Braun was the leader of the team that designed the V-2 ballistic missile for Nazi Germany.” (Neufeld 1). In September 1944, these missiles that traveled faster than the speed of sound were launched against England, and over 500 hit London (“British Response to V1 and V2”). As a result of the London bombings, more than 5,000 London civilians were killed because of von Braun’s weapons (“British Response to V1 and V2”). Von Braun was responsible for all of this death and destruction. While he may have gone on to contribute greatly to the rocketry field, he still has the blood of thousands on his hands because of his contribution to the German army.
           Von Braun was a pure opportunist; he took every deal cut for him and never faced any real consequences for his actions despite killing thousands of people. In his book, "Von Braun: Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War"  Michael J. Neufeld makes the statement "Opportunism was certainly one side of his character—one that emerged when it served his ambition to be the Columbus of space." (Neufeld 2). There is strong evidence that von Braun only wished to further his career, seeing the lives of those he killed as just a means to keep his job. NASA also claims he was only trying to further his career saying.“As a means of furthering his desire to build large and capable rockets, in late 1932 he went to work for the German army to develop liquid-fuel missiles” “Von Braun was a member of an SS equestrian unit in 1933–34, joined the Nazi Party in 1937 and became a junior SS officer in 1940” (Wernher von Braun - NASA). Fortunately for von Braun, his genius and knowledge of rocketry continued to provide him with opportunities such as becoming a part of Operation Paperclip, providing him with a new life in America free from his past and enabling him to start anew. Whether von Braun was genuinely conflicted by his past or if he merely wished to build up his image in the United States remains unanswered. However, it is known for a fact that Wernher von Braun was an opportunist and would do anything to continue his work or further his career.
          Von Braun underwent a religious conversion from Lutheranism to Evangelical Christianity while attending church in El Paso, Texas, 1946 (Mallon). He went on to openly and boldly proclaim his faith and the many ways in which it aligned with his scientific understanding rather than challenging it (Von Braun). Von Braun stated in an article for “New Age Frontiers”, "Through science, man strives to learn more of the mysteries of creation. Through religion, he seeks to know the Creator (Von Braun)." Similar statements along with private meetings with the likes of renowned evangelist Billy Graham and even Martin Luther King Jr. make a bold claim for the internal ethical change within von Braun (Ward). Despite this evidence, Neufeld believes von Braun was both internally and publicly trying to separate from his past, saying he was trying “to pacify his own conscience,” furthering him from his own sins (Walker). This was fairly common among Paperclip Scientists and other Germans who preferred to just move on rather than look back. 
         With his contributions to space travel and all the destruction he caused, it is hard to say where his true motives and ethical reasoning may have lain. There is even the possibility of a moral change throughout von Braun’s life. Yet, all that can be said for sure is that he was a genius ex-Nazi war criminal who was obsessed with the idea of space travel and ultimately changed aeronautics and rocketry forever.