Abstract This paper discusses the historical success of civil obedience in invoking change, offering Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mohandas Gandhi as examples. It explains that a strong and charismatic leader and commitment to peace are vital for effective change. The paper also explores why civil disobedience did not work in the case of the Jews in Nazi Germany.
From the Paper "Both Gandhi and King served as leaders and role models and inspired others to follow their example. As skilled orators, both Gandhi and King spoke in public and addressed the concerns of their opponents reasonably and articulately. Gandhi and King had game plans: outlines for their goals and desired outcomes. The Jews had no such opportunity to organize. Although as Gandhi points out they lived as the untouchables of Europe and had been persecuted for centuries, the Jews had no prior impetus for practicing civil disobedience. When the Holocaust ensued, shock and fear paralyzed any attempts to organize a resistance movement. On the other hand, both in India and in the United States, public outcries provided a strong current of support for civil disobedience. "
Abstract In this paper, the author examines the questions raised in Elie Wiesel's novel, "Night." A brief background of Wiesel and this work is presented. The paper also focuses on this book being about the experiences of a victim and not an account of the reasons behind the Holocaust. The paper also considers some of the literary devices used by Wiesel to describe his experience. The author found Wiesel's story to be particularly compelling because it is from the point of view of a child who could not be expected to understand the political and social disruptions of the time.
From the Paper "The main figure in Elie Wiesel's Night is a surrogate for Wiesel himself. The story is true, and Wiesel distances himself from the story as he speaks of the young man, Eliezer, who was once himself as if he were observing another person, and one critic notes that the book uses "novelistic methods: it is retrospective, it is clearly the result of narrative choices and omissions, and its first-person narrator is at a distance from its character, whose name, Eliezer, is different from that of the author" (Vice 164). Perhaps this distance is necessary to allow Wiesel to probe into a time of great pain to himself and to others. However, the attitudes expressed and the views of Jewish life and the Jewish future are clearly those of Wiesel."
Abstract This paper provides a brief glimpse of Holocaust literature by reviewing a few selected examples of diaries, memoirs, fiction, and poetry, besides taking a look at the "Holocaust denial" literature. The author describes how these works express the spectrum of emotions experienced by victims and survivors because they are personal accounts. Each genre that the author includes is described with specific examples. Special attention is given to Holocaust denial as well.
Outline:
Diaries and Memoirs
Fiction
Poetry
Holocaust Denial
From the Paper "Apart from the numerous history books on the Holocaust, an enormous amount of literature on the most horrific event of the 20th century exists in the form of memoirs, diaries, letters, works of fiction including novels and short stories, as well as poetry, plays and paintings. Most of them have been written (or sketched/ painted) by Holocaust survivors, providing us with a first hand perspective of the horrors of the Holocaust. Being personal accounts or loosely autobiographical stories, they provide us with something the history books cannot--the survivors' emotions, thoughts, hopes and dreams, and their reactions to the terror of the Holocaust. The literature is a testimony to the resilience of human spirit and the will to survive in the most terrible circumstances imaginable; it also reflects the goodness and compassion of the human spirit as well as its unadulterated evilness. At times the literature even depicts the peculiar emotion of the "survivor's guilt"--the sense of remorse at having survived the terrible ordeal when many of their near and dear ones perished. This paper provides a brief glimpse of the Holocaust literature by reviewing a few selected examples of diaries, memoirs, fiction, and poetry besides taking a look at the "Holocaust denial" literature."
Abstract This paper examines the Nuremberg Trials by questioning several legal aspects of the proceedings. The author argues that the Allies exceeded the laws of the time in their quest to punish Nazis for what they saw as unacceptable ways to conduct war. The paper concludes that the Trials also did not serve a deterrent purpose, rather they demonstrated the difficulty of using law to deal with unpredictable and unexpected behavior.
Outline:
Introduction
Allied Positions
Defendants' Views
Justice of Injustice?
Conclusion
From the Paper "The Nuremberg Trials took place in Nuremberg, Germany from 1945 to 1949, following the end of World War II. They were the culmination of efforts by the victorious allies to address actions taken by the Nazis during World War II that most of the Allies believed went well beyond the boundaries of acceptable practice of warfare. However, the Allies themselves exceeded the laws of the time in their quest to punish Nazis for what they saw as unacceptable ways to conduct war."
Abstract This essay provides an overview of the history of Auschwitz. It takes the reader through the process from the prisoners' arrival by train to their eventual means of extermination or liberation. The paper describes the different groups into which the prisoners were split and their fates.
From the Paper "On October 7th, 1944, a group of inmates came together during an uprising, taking SS guards by surprise using makeshift weapons of stones, axes, hammers, and homemade grenades. They overcame the SS guards and blew up a crematorium with smuggled explosives. Hundreds of prisoners ended up escaping, but were recaptured and executed promptly. This revolt, although the most effective of all attempts, still did not liberate any of the prisoners."
Abstract This paper discusses how the books "Man's Search For Meaning" by Viktor Frankl and "Warriors Don't Cry" by Melba Pattillo Beals are comparable on many levels. It looks at how both deal with oppression of a group of people because of religious and/or ethnic differences. It examines how Frankl's novel is a recollection of his experiences in the Nazi Death Camps during World War II, and how he found a way to survive not only physically, but mentally as well. It also looks at how "Warriors Don't Cry" is about Beals' experience as one of nine black children to be integrated into Central High School in 1957 and the persecution that she and her fellow classmates faced.
From the Paper "When the school year ended for Melba, as well as when the prisoners were liberated from the camps, happiness was not all of the sudden restored, but it was an emotion that had to be relearned in both situations. On page 310 in Warriors Don't Cry, Beals states, "It would take years of sorting out my Central High experience before the pieces of my life puzzle would come together and I could make sense of what happened to me". The trauma that Melba and her fellow black peers had experienced robbed them of all emotion that could be connected to the situation. In order to stop the pain, they blocked out feeling all together. "
Tags: concentration, camps, World, War, Two, African-American, black
Abstract In this article, the writer relates that, through his use of propaganda and his formidable oratorical skills, Hitler was able to build the Nazi Party into a mass movement, based on a strong foundation of anti-Semitism. The paper further explains that Hitler's idea of ensuring the racial purity among the German people ultimately led to his "final solution," where he instituted the mass murder of millions of Jews, as well as the Sinti and Roma tribes, Slavic peoples, homosexuals and other groups of peoples that were considered racially inferior.
From the Paper "By 1907, Hitler had moved to Vienna, hoping to pursue studies in art. However, a rejection from the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts dashed his hopes, and his mother's death a year later contributed to his impoverishment. He eventually ended up in a homeless shelter. It was in the homeless shelter where Hitler was first exposed to the extreme political views of Lanz von Liebenfels, a proponent of the racial superiority of the Aryans. Von Liebfels believed, among others, that "the Aryan race was in danger of annihilation" at the hands of enemy races, most notably the European Jews."
"During this period, the poverty-stricken Hitler was also exposed to several anti-Semitic pamphlets, accusing the Jews of conspiring against the rest of the German population and of gaining riches at the expense of the Christian population. Given his poverty, the young Hitler was a prime target for such propaganda. Hitler would later draw from these ideas in speeches railing about the need to protect Germany and Europe from the influence of the Jews."
Abstract This paper presents an examination of the Holocaust. The paper contends that, while many people believe the study of the Holocaust is testament to the horrors of Hitler, it is also testament to the strength of those who survived those horrors. The paper further explores stories of survival and attributes the strength and strong will of human nature to that survival.
Outline:
Introduction
Case in Point
The Other Side
Conclusion
From the Paper "The Holocaust remains one of recent history's most horrific events. It was a time in which humans turned against humans and millions of innocent victims were wiped out by virtue of their religion or race. Gas chambers, starvation and illness became a way of life for those ordered into the concentration camps to try and survive inhumane conditions. When it was over and stories of survival began to emerge the world was horrified by what it heard people had been forced to endure. While no one can deny the horrific nature of the Holocaust the byproduct that came from it is the discovery of the strength of human nature when faced with unimaginable diversity. "
Abstract This paper stresses that many of Germany's policies in both Poland and France during the occupation were similar as far as the Jewish population was concerned; however, the people of France clearly showed more willingness to cooperate with these policies than the Poles, despite the fact that Poland had a much larger Jewish population, in both numbers and per capita, than France. The author further points out that the Germans systematically destroyed the economy of Poland for the solitary purpose of helping the German war effort; whereas, the Germans gave many resources to the French economy to help reestablish it after the devastation from WWI. The paper relates that, in the sphere of government, France was given autonomy through the Vichy government, whereas the Poles, seen as nothing better than pack animals, barely more worthy of life than Jews, were given no such autonomy.
From the Paper "One of the first actions of the German administration of Northern France was to try to make the region economically stable again. This was not done out of the goodness of the Nazis' hearts, but rather because France could become a valuable factory for war material and food. This area of France was also where the proposed invasion of Britain, "Operation Sealion", was to be launched. The iron, steel, and other natural resource industries were nationalized in order to give the Germans better control. In order to try to prevent wartime inflation and shortages, price controls were instituted."
Abstract This paper takes a look at the lives of those living in Nazi concentration camps during the Holocaust. The purpose of this paper is to try and show the inhuman brutality of these concentration camps. The paper further discusses the extermination camps that were built in 1942 with the purpose of murdering Jews.
From the Paper " Many prisoners eventually became what were known as Muselmanner. The Muselmanner are persons destroyed, devastated, shattered wrecks strung between life and death. They are the victims of a stepwise annihilation of human beings. The mere external appearance of the Muselmanner bespoke profound dehumanization. In a final stage of emaciation, their skeletons were enveloped by flaccid, parchmentlike sheaths of skin, edema had formed on their feet and thighs, their posterior muscles had collapsed. Their skulls seemed elongated; their noses dripped constantly, mucus running down their chins. Their eyeballs had sunk deep into their sockets; their gaze was glazed. Their limbs moved slowly, hesitantly, almost mechanically. They exuded a penetrating, acrid odor; sweat, urine, liquid feces trickled down their legs. The rags that covered their freezing frames were full of lice; their skin was covered with scabies. Most suffered from diarrhea. They ate anything they could lay their hands on--moldy bread, cheese wriggling with worms, raw bits of turnip, garbage fished from the bins. "
Abstract In this article, the writer examines one of the excerpts presented in 'The Holocaust: A Reader', that appears to be an excerpt from the diary of Emmanuel Ringelblum. The writer explains that it is assumed that Ringelblum was a resident of the Warsaw Ghetto in Poland. The writer discusses that the diary gives some interesting historical information about life inside the Jewish ghettos. The writer concludes that the reader is unaware of whether Ringelblum died in the ghetto, was shipped to a concentration camp where he was killed, survived life in the concentration camp, or survived the war without further incident. However, the reader is aware that Ringelblum's life was severely disrupted and harmed by his time in the ghetto.
From the Paper "Furthermore, Ringelblum makes it clear that it was not only the Gestapo who participated in the oppression of Jews in the ghetto. For example, Ringelblum describes the activities of the Polish police in the ghetto. Rather than working to keep Jews safe or resolve disputes, the Polish police ended up being in charge of anti-smuggling operations. However, rather than actually discouraging smuggling, the Polish officers profited off of the misery of those in the ghetto, by requiring bribes from the smugglers. Even children were required to bribe police officers in order to obtain food and necessities."
"However, Ringelblum also makes it clear that Jews were aware of the part that they played in the German war machine. Jews in the Warsaw ghetto were expected to contribute to the war effort by restoring or sewing uniforms for Nazi soldiers. Those who did not contribute in that manner were exterminated. Furthermore, Ringelblum observed Nazi propaganda. The Gestapo would stage incidents of violence by Jews or Poles against Jews, and have photos of the Gestapo stopping such violence."
Abstract The paper talks about the rise to power of Hitler and the Nazi party. The paper discusses the Nazi form of government, culture and economy and explores Hitler's views concerning the master race, the elite Aryans. The paper explains how this led to the genocide of Jews and other minority groups. This is known as the Holocaust, considered the greatest crime against humanity in history. The paper explains that the Holocaust was made possible by the total control of the totalitarian regime of the Nazi Party, the passive consent of the majority of the German population, a collaboration of regimes with similar views and deeply rooted anti-Semitism among Christian countries in Europe.
Outline:
Introduction
Government
Economy
Culture
From the Paper "Adolph Hitler was an Austrian soldier in the German army, who attended the meetings of the then small Nazi Party in Munich (Suffolk Community College Department 2006). Through his magnetic speeches, Hitler won the admiration of the other soldiers and attracted new members to the Party. He came to be viewed as essential to the movement and he used that sentiment to maneuver himself into its leadership. As the leader, he managed to demand and receive the complete subservience of the Party members. Hitler was described as a fanatical soldier who held racist, anti-Semitic and authoritarian views (Suffolk Community College Department)."
Abstract The paper relates that "Shoah" consists of many hours of interviews with three categories of characters: survivors, witnesses and perpetrators. The paper explains that, in order to depict the historical reality, the director takes the survivors back to the places where their story happened. The paper relates that there are four places which concerned the director: Chelmno, Treblinka, Auschwitz - Birkenau and Warsaw ghetto. The paper maintains that Lanzmann succeeds in passing down a message about man's capacity for cruelty to his fellow man to the coming generations and in publicizing the Jewish tragedy around the world.
From the Paper "Shoah consists of many hours of interviews with three categories of characters: survivors, witnesses and perpetrators. In order to depict the historical reality, the director takes the survivors back to the places where their story happened. He makes them face the places where the terror took place. The particular medium of the documentary film work describes the historical reality of the holocaust through people who lived "shoah" , history is told by the people who survived, witnessed or people who were directly involved in conducting the holocaust."
Abstract This paper reviews and discusses the Holocaust, the systematic murder of six million Jews. According to the paper, the Nazis were obsessive record keepers and the holocaust is therefore the most well documented genocide in the history of mankind. It looks at the nature of anti-Semitism and Hitler's rise to power, his use of the Jews as scapegoats, his belief in eugenics and a super-race. It also discusses the concentration camps and how the world stood by and failed to help the Jews.
Outline:
What is Antisemitism?
Hitler's Rise to Power
Nazi Concentration Camps
Why Didn't Anyone Help Them?
Conclusion - Hitler's Legacy
From the Paper "Those who could work, mostly men, were sent the other way and "processed" into the camp. They were stripped naked, all their belongings confiscated, and shaved from head to toe, given worn-out rags to wear and shoes that did not fit. There were no blankets, mattresses, pillows, or heat in the dormitory "beds" (like wooden boxes) where they slept six to a bed. They were systematically starved and used for slave labor. After a whole day of heavy labor, "dinner" was a bowl of cabbage "soup," mostly water, and sometimes a slice of bread. They mustered twice a day to be counted, often standing for hours on end without adequate clothing in the winter. Those who became unable to work went to the gas chamber. During epidemics the bodies piled up in heaps like garbage, and vicious dogs, trained to hate the prisoners, guarded the camps. (Frankl, 1997)."
Abstract The paper discusses the minimization of the horrors of the twentieth century. The paper explains that this has not only led to a disrespectful attitude regarding some of these horrors and their survivors, but has also increased the risk that similar events will occur in the twenty-first century. The paper examines three instances of historical revisionism; one that has lasted almost 70 years, (Holocaust denial) and resulted in an increase in anti-Semitism and two that are just beginning to effect social and political concerns, (the war in Iraq and the crises in Darfur.) The paper shows how accurate historical memories are absolutely essential to the future of the world.
From the Paper "One of the problems that have consistently plagued historians who are seeking to teach history in a manner aimed at solving social problems is the concept of revisionist history. There are a myriad of definitions of revisionist history, many of them tailored to address specific issues that arise as a result of specific historical events. For example, for many years history textbooks in the American south continued to teach about slavery from a context of benevolent paternalism. One problem with historical revisionism is that by minimizing the horrors of the past, one renders oneself powerless to address the very real problems that exist in the present-day as a result of those horrors."
