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Treatment of Jewish People in Nazi Germany 1933-1945
Treatment of Jewish People in Nazi Germany 1933-1945
Why were the Jewish people persecuted by Nazi Germany
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Recommended: Treatment of Jewish People in Nazi Germany 1933-1945
Rebellion Society teaches that everyone is equal; however, between 1933 and 1945, the Nazi party deemed Jews inferior. Some people agreed with the party, other silently rebelled. Either way, in 12 years around 6 million Jews were systematically murdered. One person who silently rebelled was Hans Huberman. In “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak, Hans Huberman’s compassionate actions and beliefs are influenced by the Nazi party’s treatment of Jews. In an act of defiance against the inhumane treatment of Jews, Hans chooses to be empathetic and decides to hide Max from his condemned fate. In 1938, a movement started in which, “The Nazi party conducted mass arrests of adult male Jews and incarcerated them in camps for periods of time” (Ushmm.org,
“The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak is narrated by death and begins when Liesel’s brother dies on a train with her and her mother. At her brother’s burial, she steals her first book, “The Grave Digger’s Handbook” and soon after is separated from her mother and sent to live with foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann, in Molching, where the majority of the book takes place. At school, Liesel is teased because she can’t read so Hans teaches her to read when she wakes up from her frequent nightmares about her brother’s death. Hans is a painter and an accordion player and also plays the accordion for her after her nightmares. Liesel grows very close with Hans and also becomes close friends with her neighbor Rudy Steiner who constantly asks her to
The Book Thief and The Devil’s Arithmetic both focus on the prejudice Hitler had on different types of people during World War II. Liesel and Hannah both lost someone they had dearly loved. Liesel lost Rudy and Hannah lost many members of her family. In a time of fearfulness, both had told stories to the people surrounding them. Although both were not seen as equal in the eyes of many during their time, I see them as courageous and brave heroes after what they underwent.
Ishmael tells the narrator about Walter Sokolow’s obsession with Hitler and how Hitler held every German’s attention by telling them a story about Aryan power. Ishmael feels...
The Hubermanns decide to hide a Jewish man in their basement, and this struggle to keep him hidden is a fight in and of itself. Even Germans (like the Hubermanns) that were against the Führer were not allowed to voice their opinion, and therefore helped in any way they could. Although military-involved Germans would discriminate very often, as shown in the quote, “‘The maniacal soccer player!’... Does he know? Liesel thought. Can he smell we’re hiding a Jew?” (Zusak 343), the people of Germany were very scared about the future. This laid the ground for Hitler’s downfall. In The Book Thief, Rudy defies hate and intolerance through a simple act of rebellion. He refuses to give the Führer’s birthday, and suffers for it. Throughout The Book Thief, Markus Zusak shows readers that hate and intolerance were overcome throughout Germany even in the darkest times of the
After listening to a testimony from Ralph Fischer, a Holocaust survivor I have gained a new level of understanding to what happened in those few years of terror when the Nazi party was at power. On top of that I have learned that they are just like other people in many different ways. As a child, Ralph went to school, played with friends, and spent time with his family. All that is comparable to any other modern-day child. However, as the Nazi party rose to power he was often bullied, left out, or even beat for being Jew. Although not as extreme, I have often been mistreated because I was different, and it’s easy to understand the pain of being left out just because you are not the same. Eventually he had to drop out of school and then had
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is intriguing in the sense that it conveys the story of a young girl in Nazi Germany from the perspective of Death himself. Throughout this book, Death points out the destruction humanity causes, and this destruction comes in two forms: both physical, as well as emotional. Since this book is set in World War II, and physical destruction is a common occurrence during this time, Death frequently discusses its different forms, which include Jewish internment camps, bullets, bombs, as well as fires. These physical forms of destruction lead to deaths, as well as injuries that can take a toll on the emotional states of humans. Therefore, through Death’s descriptions of the many forms of physical destruction, as well
In the novel The Book Thief by Markus Zusak the narrator is Death, who shows itself as sympathetic and sensitive towards the suffering of the world and the cruel human nature, through its eyes, we can get to know the heartbreaking story of Liesel Meminger an ordinary, but very lucky nine-year old German girl; living in the midst of World War II in Germany. In this book the author provides a different insight and observation about humanity during this time period from a German view and not an Allied perspective, as we are used to.
Hans supports the Jewish community, who are viewed as ‘undesirables subhumans’ by society. The ethical values which Hans holds are apparent in the way he treats starving and helpless Jews traveling through Molching, “The Jew stood before him, expecting another handful of derision, but he watched with everyone else as Hans Hubermann held his hand out and presented a piece of bread” (Zusak 395). As a consequence of rejecting societal expectations and ideologies, the character Hans Hubermann solidifies the notion that every individual deserves basic human respect. Therefore, Hans develops a love for humanity and the individual he is helping through refusing to obey corrupt societal expectations. Aiding those who are injured is a gateway to love as it changes the world for the individual one is
Human nature has many elements that reveal the growth and personality of a person. In Markus Zusak’s “The Book Thief”, the author successfully portrays various aspects of human nature through Hans’ conflicts that originate from the tough reality that he lives in. Elements of human nature can be seen as a result of Hans’ constant struggles with guilt, kindness, and love.
The Holocaust is marked as one of the most horrifying events of the 20th century.The person who was responsible for the Holocaust was Adolf Hitler, the leader of the Nazi Party. The question is, how, and why was Hitler able to do this? The actual truth behind all this is that, Hitler could make the world his, just by using words. In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, it tells a story about a young girl growing up when Nazi Germany was invincible. The author explores some very meaningful, yet, controversial themes for the most part of the novel. Out of all themes, he believes that words hold a remarkable power. He explores how words manipulate, divide, and connect people.
When standing up for what we believe in, sometimes, our voices are not heard and we are unable to make the difference we had hoped. In The Book Thief, Liesel and Hans both disagree with what Adolf Hitler is doing to the Jews. They have discussed in the privacy of their home what it is they feel is wrong and how they do not completely follow the Fuhrer and his ideas. The girl and her father never dare to talk about what they believe to those around them and are very careful not to let anything slip when they are in public. Both know that expressing their views on their country's leader could lead to capture, or even death. In Nazi Germany, the consequences were much steeper than they are in todays society. Today there are many issues, including: marriage equality, racial equality, and gender equality, which many people do not agree with, that they are fighting over, but these people are not making any progress towards fixing what they believe are the flaws.
Death states that, “I’m always finding humans at their best and worst. I see their ugly and their beauty, and I wonder how the same thing can be both” (Zusak 491). This book shows us human doing things that weren’t even imaginable before this point. Many people give into ideas that were lies. But, we also watch a few people go out of their way and sacrifice everything for a man they barely even know. They do everything they can to keep him safe and alive. They work harder, the get another job, and they even steal. In Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief, death examines the ugliness and the beauty of humans.
When put into situations that test the humanity of people, what characteristics still show through? Shared humanity is a term used to explain what all humans have in common, and has six major categories: Loss, Morality, Survival, Relationships, Choices, and Emotions. The characteristics that seem to come out naturally, even in strange circumstances, are often things shared with all other humans. Major works, such as The Book Thief, How I Live Now, and Harry Potter Order of the Phoenix often show many examples of Shared Humanity and its effect on our lives.
If you were a German citizen during World War II, do you think you would be a Nazi? Most people would say no even though, in actuality, most people would be. It is because people need to succumb to societal expectations to survive in a society such as that of Germany during WWII and in the book, The Book Thief, this theme of individual versus society is explored with people complying and fighting social expectations. Sometimes people side with the Nazi Party out of fear of being targeted and other times fight against Nazi Party because of love for their family and fellow man with usually terrible consequences. In The Book Thief, the theme of the individual versus society is shown many times with characters conforming and defying social expectations.
A film bursting with visual and emotional stimuli, the in-depth character transformation of Oscar Schindler in Schindler’s List is a beautiful focal point of the film. Riddled with internal conflict and ethical despair, Schindler challenges his Nazi Party laws when he is faced with continuing his ambitious business ideas or throwing it all away for the lives of those he once saw as solely cheap labor. Confronted with leading a double life and hiding his motivations from those allegiant to Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party, Schindler undergoes numerous ethical dilemmas that ultimately shape his identity and challenge his humanity. As a descendent of a Jewish-American, Yiddish speaking World War II soldier who helped liberate concentration camps in Poland, this film allowed for an enhanced personal