 Revisionist historians argue that it was an ordinary war by world standards and that Hitler was an opportunist of the sort who commonly appears in world history; he merely took advantage of the opportunities given to him.This viewpoint became popular in the 1970s, especially in the revisionism of A. J. P. Taylor.Throughout the course of the war, orthodox historians argue as if the Axis powers were a sort of evil consuming the world with their powerful message and malignant ideology, while the Allied powers were trying to protect democracy and freedom.