The Role Of The Holocaust In Holocaust Literature

The Holocaust, yet another unpleasant time in history tainted with the blood and suffering of man. Human beings tortured, executed and starved for hatred and radical ideas. Yet with many tragedies there are survivors, those who refused to die on another man’s command. These victims showed enormous willpower, they overcame human degradation and tragedies that not only pushed their beliefs in god, but their trust in fellow people. It was people like Elie Wiesel author of “Night”, Eva Galler,Sima Gleichgevicht-Wasser, and Solomon Radasky that survived, whose’ mental and physical capabilities were pushed to limits that are difficult to conceive. Each individual experiences were different, but their survival tales not so far-reaching to where the fundamental themes of fear, family, religion and self-preservation played a part in surviving. Although some of these themes weren’t always so useful for survival.

The terrors of the Holocaust are unimaginably destructive as described in the book Night by Elie Wiesel. The story of his experience about the Holocaust is one nightmare of a story to hear, about a trek from one’s hometown to an unknown camp of suffering is a journey of pain that none shall forget. Hope and optimism vanished while denial and disbelief changed focus during Wiesel’s journey through Europe. A passionate relationship gradually formed between the father and the son as the story continued. The book Night genuinely demonstrates how the Holocaust can alter one's spirits and relations.

The word Holocaust refers to the mass murder of 6 million European Jews by the German Nazi regime during World War II. It began in 1933 and ended in 1945. The ruler of Germany during this time was Adolf Hitler. He and the Nazis put the Jew in concentration camps, where thousands were killed everyday. This was one of the worst if not the worst genocides in history. Many books have been written to document survivors’ testimony of this horrific event. Elie Wiesel shares his story and Art Spiegelman shares his father’s story in the books Night and Maus. Comparisons can be drawn between Maus and Night through the author's purpose for writing , the survivor’s experiences, and the author's perspective.

Spiegelman’s book presents us with a unique way of showcasing a person’s personal experience of a historical occurrence, that being the Holocaust. According to Hatfield, Spiegelman’s manner of sharing this tale is not exactly the best. Hatfield states his disagreements over Spiegelman’s book.

By comparing, analyzing and questioning the validity of Maus I and II, Night, Night and Fog, nonfictional historical accounts and a poem, called Already Embraced by the Arm of Heavenly Solace, found in Europe in the Contemporary World, Schindler’s List and the Return to Auschwitz we may determine to what degree these sources serve to advance humanity’s understanding of the holocaust. The holocaust can be explained as the historical event in which the Nazi’s, who came to power in Germany in January 1933, and its collaborators murdered and persecuted approximately six million Jews. This came about because of the German belief that they were “racially superior” and the Jews were an alien threat to the German state. For humanity to advance in

The Holocaust was a terrible time for many people, but the part that is often over looked is the psychological and physical effects after liberation. This research essay will work to answer the question; How did the Holocaust from 1933 to 1945 affect the Jewish population in the years following? This will be answered by examining many different types of sources. Most of the sources used are secondary with primary sources embedded within. For example, in many of the books used, there were some quotes from survivors and related persons included as well. There are also some, not many, online sources used which give a modern point of view. All the sources were written in America including both the physical sources and the online sources.

Between 1939 and 1945, Germany partook in the Holocaust, the systematic elimination of the Jewish race, resulting in the deaths of approximately 6 million Jews and two thirds of the European Jewish population being eradicated . Led by Adolf Hitler and the Schutzstaffel, these killings took place in death camps placed in Poland, the biggest one being Auschwitz-Birkenau. Approximately 1.5 million Jews were killed at Auschwitz and it was almost impossible to escape. However, some Jews survived as they were forced into hard labour until the end of World War II. One of these survivors was Eliezer ‘Elie’ Wiesel, who documented his experiences of the Holocaust in his memoir “Night” . His experiences and opinion contribute to the overall historical narrative of the Holocaust genocide through the recollection of events as well as first-person encounters. “Night” is renowned as the first piece of Holocaust literature which is majorly conformant with other sources and recounts, depicting an almost identical sequence of events which indicates accurate and reliable inferences and deductions from historians. Thus Elie Wiesel’s experience reflects the wider background of Holocaust survivors.

Despite these challenges it’s important recognize the vast improvements and efforts teachers all over Germany are making to better educate their students about the Holocaust. For example, teachers help to foster empathy and personalize the Holocaust through the reading and analysis of contemporary Holocaust literature and non-fiction (e.g. writings by Primo Levi, Imre Kertescz, and Günter Grass). These works serve to not only represent he victims of the Holocaust but also the bystanders, perpetrators, and their descendants which help to communicate the German guilt that is so often left out of public discourse. Additionally, many teachers use artwork by Holocaust victims to allow students to visualize the suffferings endured during the Holocaust and raise questions of what the artists were trying to convey through the art (Holocaust Task Force). More interactive components have be incorporated into modern Holocaust education such as visits to former concentration camps and guest speakers who were often Holocaust survivors or community members alive during WWII. Through these approaches teachers are providing not only

The Holocaust had commenced in 1933 by Nazi Germany, wiping out 6 million Jews by killing them in gas chambers or simply shooting them. This essay will be agreeing that ‘although the Holocaust was a horrific event, experiences from this period ought to be commemorated by modern generations’. The topics that this essay will be addressing is, effects on family, learning experience and respect for those who experienced the Holocaust. Firstly, the Holocaust should be commemorated by the modern generation to get a better understanding of how the Holocaust has affected families.

Individuals in this world today, who was affected by the Holocaust in some way would be affected more if they didn’t even know the truth. If history was not recorded, the world would be different than from what it is today. Literature helps people see the damage done by using truth while giving an emotional connection to the Holocaust victims.

In public discourse surrounding an event like the Holocaust, it is not uncommon for one to want to summarize the event in some abstract concept, be it positive or negative. This type of thinking is especially prevalent in the conclusions drawn by those reading literary works relating to the Holocaust, in which the stories are so entrenched with stereotypes of suffering and the equivocal life-lessons that they lead to a rather shallow understanding of an emotive and difficult subject. This is not to say that drawing these types of conclusions is wrong or especially invalid, but rather the process of projecting these lessons onto the story without developing their further implications speaks to a superficial longing of externalizing the

survivor who initially worked as a smuggler to get food to help her family survive in the Ghettos, got separated from them after the liquidation of the ghettos in October 4 1992. Dr.Krystyna Sanderson who narrates Wasser’s story writes, “After that day, October 4, 1942, Sima never saw her family again. But she had no time for tears or other emotions; she went into survival mode. She was exhausted, starving, and infested with scabies. She had to find a place to stay, but people refused to take her in” (Sanderson 1).Like many other survivors, for Sima the importance of family abated because the Holocaust progressed to a point where many had either been separated or were many had made the choice of taking care of themselves. She didn’t know

•The most famous book in the Holocaust was written by a 13 year old girl, and it has been read by 10 million people.

Miller, like Glowacka, understands that literature, even fiction, transmits ideas and emotions to the reader which are central to comprehending and learning from traumatic experiences. Miller references Susan Suleiman’s argument that the Holocaust is “only available through representation”. Suleiman made this argument in response to Holocaust deniers who claim that fictitious memoirs confirm the inexistence of the Holocaust. However, the point supports the idea that art, including literature, allows the public to experience something like the Holocaust that otherwise would be not be available to experience.

Each of these accounts of the end of the Holocaust and liberation have aspects that are similar and some that are different. All three survivors experienced the horrific conditions of the Holocaust. It is very important to not oversimplify the complex events that took place before, during, and after liberation. One has to remember not to assume all accounts have happy endings. Through All But My Life, Maus II, and Survival in Auschwitz, we get to really understand what Gerda, Vlad, and Primo went through. We get to witness the deaths they witnessed, the rampant deadly illnesses, the hopelessness, the fear, and the loneliness that comes from liberation. When studying the Holocaust, these accounts allow us to realize that liberation is not the