Ethical Dilemmas : Examples During the Holocaust

All around the world, every minute of everyday someone encounters a moral dilemma whether it is minuscule or monumental. Going against ones religious or moral beliefs can be problematic; it may in fact be so moving that it causes one to reexamine their entire thought process. Before the Holocaust, Hitler campaigned in Germany with promises that Germany will be great again, people took these promises like candy and followed his every word. Soon they were so loyal to Hitler that they never stood up for the innocent people being murdered. Many tentatively followed each order shouted at them. When told to kill, they killed; when told to scare, they scared; when told to harm, they harmed. Each order had the same response with the occasional bout of deviation.

The Milgram experiment shows us that when one comes face to face with an authority figure that the authority figures always win. During the Milgram experiment people were classified as “teachers” and “students”. The students would answer the teacher’s questions and if they give the wrong response, the teacher would deliver an electric shock. Statistics show that sixty-five percent of the “teachers” delivered the maximum shock of four-hundred and fifty volts with persuasion from the experimenter. This shows that when one was faced with a moral dilemma if an authority figure is present that the person will most likely go along with what they order. Hitler was this authority figure and people made decisions based on his orders. The Jewish people however followed the orders of their religious leaders or beliefs. Many Jewish leaders faced moral dilemmas and made the correct decisions. Several helped others survive, denied Nazi orders in order to protect their loved ones, and made life...

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...possible (Fogelman).”

Irene was the symbol of hope for those Jews and she did everything in her abilities to keep them alive and safe until there was nothing left to do. She was willing to face deaths cold grasp rather than let her friends die. Without Irene’s sacrifice the hidden Jews would have been tortured and assassinated with no other thought on the matter. She made a decision that would break many if put in her position and she kept them alive until the dreadful day when the Nazis sent out orders for them to be deported.

Works Cited

Fogelman, Eva. "Morality as Motivation." Conscience Courage: Rescuers of Jews during the Holocaust. New York: Anchor Doubleday, 1995. 161-80. Print

Nevins, Michael, MD. "Moral Dilemmas Faced by Jewish Doctors During the Holocaust." Moral Dilemmas Faced by Jewish Doctors During the Holocaust. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Jan. 2014.