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Essays on Holocaust

Hook examples for holocaust essays, the unimaginable horror hook.

Begin your essay by vividly describing the unimaginable horrors of the Holocaust, such as concentration camps, mass extermination, and the human suffering that occurred during this dark period in history. Use powerful and descriptive language to evoke emotions in your readers.

The Survivor's Testimony Hook

Share a compelling personal testimony of a Holocaust survivor. Use direct quotes or excerpts from survivors' accounts to provide firsthand insights into the experiences and resilience of those who lived through the Holocaust.

The Nuremberg Trials and Justice Hook

Discuss the Nuremberg Trials and the pursuit of justice for the perpetrators of the Holocaust. Highlight the importance of holding individuals accountable for their actions and the establishment of principles for international law.

The Heroes of the Holocaust Hook

Introduce the stories of individuals who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust, such as Oskar Schindler or Raoul Wallenberg. Emphasize acts of bravery and compassion in the face of extreme adversity.

The Lessons of History Hook

Reflect on the broader lessons and moral implications of the Holocaust. Discuss the importance of remembering and learning from this tragic event to prevent future genocides and promote tolerance and understanding.

The Art and Literature of Survival Hook

Showcase how Holocaust survivors used art, literature, and other forms of expression to cope with their trauma and convey their experiences. Explore the therapeutic and documentary aspects of creative works produced during and after the Holocaust.

The Holocaust in Contemporary Context Hook

Connect the Holocaust to current events, discussing instances of hate crimes, discrimination, and genocide in the modern world. Highlight the importance of remembrance and education to prevent the recurrence of such atrocities.

The Resilience and Hope Hook

Share stories of resilience and hope within the Holocaust, such as clandestine education in concentration camps or acts of solidarity among prisoners. Explore the indomitable human spirit that emerged even in the darkest times.

The Forgotten Victims Hook

Draw attention to less-discussed aspects of the Holocaust, such as the experiences of Romani people, disabled individuals, or political dissidents who also suffered persecution. Shed light on the diversity of victims and their stories.

The Role of Witnesses and Documentation Hook

Discuss the significance of witnesses, both survivors and liberators, who documented the Holocaust through photographs, diaries, and testimonies. Emphasize the importance of preserving and sharing these historical records.

Blind Obedience in The Holocaust

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Why People Should Still Be Educated About The Holocaust

The decline of human ethics and the rise of science: nazi-eugenic experiments and dr. josef mengele, arek hersh – a story of a holocaust survivor, josef mengele: "the angel of death" of holocaust, let us write you an essay from scratch.

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Impact of The Holocaust on Jewish Peoples in Europe and Israel

Terrific history of the holocaust, disastrous event in jewish history: the holocaust, holocaust denial: anti-semitic conspiracy theory, get a personalized essay in under 3 hours.

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The Reasons We Should not Forget The Holocaust

Irena sendler - a person who saved hundreds of lifes during holocaust, homosexuality and the holocaust, the physical and mental impact of holocaust on its victims, the influence of jewish music on the holocaust, the holocaust: historical anti-semitism, the possibility of the holocaust to have been avoided, "after i no longer speak"; a message on the impact of the holocaust in "shooting stars", the boy in the striped pajamas - the holocaust drama, understanding the holocaust through "schindler's list", a nazi’s metamorphosis in maxine kumin’s poem "woodchucks", experiences of the survivors in night by elie wiesel and maus by art spiegelman, the use of visual narrative and formal structure in maus: a survivors tale by art spiegelman, analysis of author’s struggles in night by elie wiesel, holocaust through the eyes of a child in the boy in the striped pajamas, the holocaust: chronicle of murders, analysis of artie's impressions of the holocaust in maus, time of savagery: churchill's speech, diary of anne frank and history of shmuel and bruno, the holocaust: pumping the un government, bassani’s the garden of the finzi-continis: how glass captures and protects the beauty of the past.

1933 - 1945

German Reich and German-occupied Europe

The Holocaust was a genocidal event that took place during World War II, orchestrated by Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime in Germany. It was a systematic and state-sponsored persecution and mass murder of approximately six million Jews, along with millions of other victims, including Romani people, disabled individuals, Poles, Soviet prisoners of war, and others deemed "undesirable" by the Nazis. The Holocaust was marked by horrific atrocities, including the establishment of concentration camps, mass shootings, forced labor, and the implementation of gas chambers in extermination camps. It was an unparalleled act of inhumanity and racial hatred, driven by the Nazis' ideology of racial superiority and the desire to create a homogeneous "Aryan" society.

One such figure is Anne Frank, a young Jewish girl whose diary provided a poignant firsthand account of the atrocities committed during the Holocaust. Her diary, discovered after her death in a concentration camp, has become an iconic symbol of hope and resilience. Oskar Schindler, a German industrialist, is another notable person associated with the Holocaust. Through his efforts, Schindler saved the lives of over 1,000 Jewish people by employing them in his factories and ensuring their protection. Elie Wiesel, a Holocaust survivor and Nobel laureate, dedicated his life to bearing witness to the Holocaust and promoting Holocaust education and remembrance. His powerful memoir, "Night," chronicles his experiences in the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps. Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish diplomat, is remembered for his courageous actions in saving tens of thousands of Hungarian Jews by issuing protective passports and providing safe houses.

The historical context of the Holocaust can be traced back to the rise of Nazi ideology and its virulent antisemitism. Hitler's regime implemented a series of discriminatory laws known as the Nuremberg Laws, which stripped Jews of their rights and subjected them to persecution. This was followed by the establishment of concentration camps and the implementation of the "Final Solution" – a plan to exterminate all Jews within Nazi-controlled territories. The Holocaust occurred within the broader context of World War II, as Nazi Germany sought to expand its territories and exert dominance over Europe. The war provided a cover for the implementation of mass murder and allowed the Nazis to carry out their genocidal agenda with relative impunity.

The Holocaust has had a profound impact on international law and the concept of human rights. The Nuremberg Trials, held after World War II, established the precedent for prosecuting individuals for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948, was a direct response to the atrocities of the Holocaust, emphasizing the inherent dignity and rights of all individuals. The Holocaust also serves as a reminder of the dangers of prejudice and discrimination. It has prompted ongoing efforts to combat antisemitism, racism, and bigotry in all forms. The Holocaust education and memorialization have become vital tools in raising awareness and fostering tolerance, ensuring that the lessons of the past are not forgotten. Furthermore, the Holocaust has inspired countless works of literature, art, and film, which bear witness to the horrors experienced by its victims. These creative expressions serve as a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the importance of remembering the past to prevent similar atrocities in the future.

Public opinion on the Holocaust varies, but it is generally characterized by shock, horror, and condemnation. The Holocaust is widely regarded as one of the most egregious crimes against humanity in history, and the vast majority of people view it with deep sorrow and sympathy for the victims. Public opinion acknowledges the gravity of the Holocaust and recognizes its impact on the world. The overwhelming sentiment is one of condemnation towards the Nazi regime and the individuals who perpetrated these heinous acts. People express profound empathy for the millions of innocent lives lost and the immense suffering endured by survivors. Moreover, public opinion acknowledges the importance of remembering the Holocaust as a means of honoring the victims and preventing future atrocities. Holocaust education and commemorative events have garnered significant support, with many recognizing the need to preserve the memory of the Holocaust as a stark reminder of the consequences of hatred and prejudice.

Film: Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List" (1993) is a critically acclaimed movie based on the true story of Oskar Schindler, a German businessman who saved the lives of over a thousand Jewish refugees during the Holocaust. The film vividly portrays the atrocities and human suffering while highlighting acts of bravery and compassion. Literature: Elie Wiesel's memoir "Night" (1956) provides a firsthand account of his experiences as a Holocaust survivor. It is a powerful and haunting narrative that has become a significant literary work, capturing the physical and emotional hardships endured by those subjected to Nazi persecution. Art: The artwork of Holocaust survivor and painter Samuel Bak often explores the themes of loss, resilience, and memory. His paintings depict scenes from his own experiences as a child during the Holocaust, offering a deeply personal and introspective perspective on the tragedy.

1. The Holocaust witnessed the systematic annihilation of six million Jewish individuals at the hands of the Nazis. This accounts for approximately two-thirds of the Jewish population in Europe at that time. 2. The Holocaust took place between 1941 and 1945 during World War II, primarily in German-occupied territories. It involved the mass extermination of Jews, as well as other groups such as Romani people, Poles, disabled individuals, and political dissidents. 3. Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest concentration and extermination camp, was responsible for the deaths of over one million people. Other notorious camps include Treblinka, Sobibor, and Dachau. 4. The Nuremberg Laws, implemented in 1935, stripped Jews of their citizenship, rights, and protections. These laws laid the foundation for the persecution and eventual mass murder of Jews during the Holocaust. 5. Rescuers, such as Oskar Schindler and Raoul Wallenberg, risked their lives to save Jews from persecution. Their heroic actions demonstrated courage and compassion in the face of immense danger.

The topic of the Holocaust is of utmost importance to write an essay about due to its profound historical significance and the lessons it teaches us about humanity. By exploring the Holocaust, we delve into one of the darkest periods in human history, where millions of innocent lives were brutally extinguished. Writing an essay about the Holocaust allows us to honor and remember the victims, ensuring that their stories are never forgotten. It serves as a powerful reminder of the consequences of unchecked hatred, discrimination, and prejudice. Through examining the causes, events, and aftermath of the Holocaust, we gain a deeper understanding of the depths of human cruelty and the dangers of ideological extremism. Moreover, studying the Holocaust prompts critical reflection on the importance of promoting tolerance, empathy, and respect for human rights. It compels us to confront the potential for evil within society and to actively work towards creating a world that rejects bigotry and embraces diversity. By writing an essay on the Holocaust, we contribute to the preservation of historical memory, promote empathy and understanding, and strive to ensure that such atrocities are never repeated. It is a testament to our commitment to learning from the past and building a more compassionate and just future.

1. Browning, C. R. (1992). Ordinary men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the final solution in Poland. Harper Perennial. 2. Dawidowicz, L. S. (1981). The war against the Jews, 1933-1945. Holt, Rinehart, and Winston. 3. Evans, R. J. (2008). The Third Reich at war: How the Nazis led Germany from conquest to disaster. Penguin. 4. Gilbert, M. (1985). The Holocaust: A history of the Jews of Europe during the Second World War. Henry Holt and Company. 5. Kershaw, I. (2000). Hitler: 1936-1945: Nemesis. W. W. Norton & Company. 6. LaCapra, D. (2004). History, memory, and representation: An essay in cognitive historiography. Cornell University Press. 7. Levi, P. (1986). Survival in Auschwitz. Touchstone. 8. Snyder, T. (2010). Bloodlands: Europe between Hitler and Stalin. Basic Books. 9. Wiesel, E. (2006). Night. Hill and Wang. 10. Yahil, L. (1991). The Holocaust: The fate of European Jewry, 1932-1945. Oxford University Press.

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holocaust essay hooks

Holocaust - Free Essay Samples And Topic Ideas

The Holocaust, a grotesque period in history, entailed the systematic genocide of six million Jews by the Nazi regime during World War II. Essays could delve into the historical antecedents, ideological underpinnings, and the chilling bureaucratic mechanisms employed to perpetrate this mass extermination. The discourse might extend to the exploration of the global response, or lack thereof, discussing the roles of various nations and international organizations during and after the Holocaust. Discussions could also focus on the enduring legacy of the Holocaust, exploring its impact on subsequent human rights movements, international law, and the collective memory of humanity. Moreover, a comprehensive analysis could include a discussion on Holocaust denial, the importance of Holocaust education, and the ongoing efforts to commemorate the victims and ensure such atrocities are never repeated. Reflecting on the Holocaust and its myriad implications can engender a deeper understanding of the human capacity for both evil and resilience, fostering a commitment to justice, tolerance, and humanitarian values. A vast selection of complimentary essay illustrations pertaining to Holocaust you can find in Papersowl database. You can use our samples for inspiration to write your own essay, research paper, or just to explore a new topic for yourself.

Cause of the Holocaust

The Holocaust took millions of lives, people of all ages. This catastrophe is still impacting people 75 years later. In this, Jews and others were snatched out of their homes and told to bring valuables, thinking they were going to a delightful place. Instead, they would line up and a Nazi would point left or right. If pointed to the right, then they were spared and transmitted to concentration camps. If pointed to the left you were transported to gas […]

Is Holocaust Denial Real?

The Holocaust was the killing and persecution of over six million Jews and other groups such as the disabled, Gypsies, Slavics, homosexuals, and Jehovah's Witnesses. The Holocaust was performed and executed by the Nazis in the 1930s and 1940s. Although there is overwhelming evidence of the existence of the Holocaust, people still deny that the Holocaust was real and wrong. In fact, only one-third of the world believes the entirety of the Holocaust (Stuart, 1). There are 3 main reasons […]

Deliberate and Systematic Destruction of a Racial, Political, or Cultural Group

This genocide that is going to be discussed was state-sponsored and became known as one of the world's most notorious times to be alive. The official definition of a holocaust is a thorough destruction involving extensive loss of life (Merriam-Webster, Holocaust ). When it pertains to the Holocaust, almost everyone knows what it is. It was the mass killing of almost six million Jewish, Slavic, and mentally disabled people by Nazi Germany during World War II. Nazis had the hope […]

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Why did the Holocaust Happen?

Today, the problem of studying the Holocaust is the problem of the recognition of its uniqueness as a historical phenomenon of a universal scale. Before World War II, all conflicts in the history of genocide were based on religious conflicts: mass extermination of people took place on religious grounds. In the twentieth century, religious motives ceased to play a decisive role in determining the group identity of people. The Holocaust was one of the acts of mass destruction of people […]

The Holocaust is One of the Worst Events in Human History

The Holocaust is one of the most horrific events to occur in the twentieth century, it lasted from 1933 to 1945. For years the question that still remains is was this final solution an intentional plan created by Hitler, made ahead of time or was it a last minute decision based off of the circumstances surrounding Germany? These two groups have been in disagreement for years attempting to find the answer when the truth is, there is no real answer. […]

Genocide: the Nazis’ Original Plan

The Holocaust, which took place during 1933-1945, was a devastating period of time when the German Nazi's planned to mass murder European Jews. The literal term 'Holocaust' originates from the Hebrew Bible's term olah meaning a sacrifice that is offered up. This was a frightening time for everyone, Jewish and non-Jewish. Approximately six million people were killed as a result of the Holocaust (Roth). Adolf Hitler, the leader of Germany at the time, hated Jews and blamed them for all […]

The Holocaust and Human Nature

There are less than eighty Holocaust survivors today. As they pass away we need to tell their stories so we know the truth. We want to remember them and never forget what they did. Throughout this paper, we will examine the rise, fall and the impact of the Holocaust. We want to be thankful that there some survivors to bring us there stories so we can prevent this event from happening again. Let's not have this event happen again. The […]

Lord of the Flies & WWII/Holocaust Connections

The fear and darkness of the time period had spread to all living souls in surrounding of the terror. William Golding's novel, Lord of the Flies, takes place around 1950 during one of the evilous events in human history. The Holocaust was a horrible act of exterminating humans for not being the way Hitler, in his mind, pictured for the human race. Lord of the Flies is a novel that has symbols with hidden meanings that historically relate to The […]

World War Ll in History

Over 6 million jews died all in one period of time. All those people died in the holocaust because of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi group. The Holocaust changed the world forever, and is something we will never forget. Jews and many others had to experience harsh conditions, and the Holocaust made such a huge impact on our world. On the evening of April 20, 1889, at an inn called the Gasthof Zum Pommer in the village of Braunau Am […]

Genocide in Germany the Holocaust

Genocide is by definition the intentional, methodical, and targeted destruction of a particular ethnic, religious, or racial group. The term genocide is derived from the Greek prefix genos, which translates to race or tribe, and the Latin suffix cide, meaning killing. The Holocaust, also known as Shoah, is the most notable and deadliest instance of genocide in the world. The Holocaust began in Germany in the 1930s and expanded to Nazi occupied Germany, until the last liberation of death camps […]

Adolf Hitler and the Holocaust

Introduction Have you ever visited the holocaust museum? Located in Washington D.C., it is a place were we honor the people who died in the Final Solution . The Final Solution was a plan made by adolf hitler to kill off the jews. German authorities persecuted other groups on political, ideological, and behavioral grounds. Among them were Communists, Socialists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and homosexuals. I wonder what the reality was in that time and place. Adolf hitler The one who started […]

The Mass Murder of Six Million Jews

By May 8, 1945, the world lost around eleven million humans consisting of men, women, and children. The years of 1933 to 1945 were known as the Holocaust. If you don't know already, the Holocaust was the mass murder of six million Jews, along with millions of others. It was lead by a blood-thirsty leader known as Adolf Hitler. Who was Adolf Hitler? What was the Holocaust? Who were the victims during the Holocaust? With the masterminds and an army […]

Holocaust Denial and Distortion

The Holocaust has been taught in schools all over the world. I can distinctly remember learning about a horrible genocide that took place during World War II, and it immediately sparked my interest to dig deeper on the subject. There are groups of people out there who do not believe the Holocaust ever occurred, and they are known as Holocaust Deniers. I have read books and articles of those who have been through it all; the selection process, the starvation, […]

The Theme of the Holocaust and the Responsibility

When we see an image in black and white, we tend to believe that such an event only occurred in a history textbook years ago. We think of wars, death, power, the absence of life, and aggression. An image in black and white can create a nostalgic mood or a hopeless feeling like the Holocaust picture presented below. The image background, a grassland, looks dead and dull, no life being born out of it and a gray sky portraying an […]

Why should we Never Forget the Holocaust

I think that it is important to learn about the holocaust and what had happened during it. From the beginning of the holocaust when it all started, 1933, when hitler became power over germany, none of it was right or acceptable. Learning about the holocaust is something that everyone in the world should know about. Knowing what happened should be enough to make sure that this action never takes place again because of how brutal and harsh it was. Humans […]

Holocaust – Jewish Resistance

It is not wrong to say that the Holocaust is the center of Israeli psychology. Unlike most other historical events whose influence is gradually blurred, the impact of the Holocaust on Israeli society has actually increased over time. This process is very complex and difficult to describe in a few pages. However, understanding its dynamics is important in studying about Israeli culture. The Holocaust is also known as the name Shoal, was the greatest tragedy of the Jewish people in […]

Adolf Hitler Ended Germany’s Democracy

Adolf Hitler ended Germany's democracy and doomed six million Jews. To this day, Hitler is one of the cruelest people the world has ever seen because of his persecution of not only Jews but of 11 million people. After reading the book Night and completing my research on the topic of Adolf Hitler Birth - 1933, I have learned so much about the dark period known as the Holocaust. Adolf Hitler was reportedly distant and sometimes depressed as a child […]

The Holocaust’s Bureaucracy of Genocide

The intent of this study was to select and analyze a global event. The event chosen to be analyzed was the Holocaust. The Holocaust occurred in Germany beginning in the 1930s and then expanded to all areas of Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II. The event was a genocide in which Nazi Germany murdered about six million European Jews; they also murdered other groups, which resulted in up to seventeen million deaths overall. Germany's persecution of these groups was implemented […]

The Holocaust in Two Parts

The beginning of the Holocaust started when WWI ended. Germany lost the war, and Adolf Hitler got furious at Jews, homosexuals, and religious groups like Gypsies, and also, there was a bit of an economic crisis, so he needed to go Thanos and wipe out pretty much half of all Jews, homosexuals, and persecuted religious groups. But before he could do that, he needed to rise to power. HITLER'S RISE TO POWER The roots of Hitler's particularly virulent brand of […]

Effects of the Holocaust

Even though the Holocaust ended over seventy years ago, it still impacts our society today. As time progresses, more effects of this event are being discovered. The holocaust is a traumatic event that will forever affect the mental health of its victims, as well as their families and our society. The Holocaust has had a lasting effect on its survivors, especially concerning their mental health. Victims of the holocaust have been found to have psychological trauma, along with PTSD. Living […]

The Root of the Holocaust: Darfur

Upon different generations we have seen numerous genocides occur in all areas around the world. One of the most famous genocides was the Holocaust. Though the Holocaust was made aware to the public and caught the eye of people all over the globe, it still fell through the cracks for many years just like a lot of other genocides. Most of the time, genocides are started in silence because the people who are being targeted are kept quiet such as […]

My Hero is Wilhelm Hosenfeld

During the gruesome and horrid years of the holocaust many villains were highlighted, but many heroes remained unseen and were overshadowed by the awful wrath of the Nazis. One of these heroic figures was Wilhelm (Welm) Hosenfeld. He served as a German Captain but quickly changed to a anti-nazi. He did not only become against the Nazis, he started to save Jewish people and sacrificing his life. Learning about Hosenfeld is relevant because we can reflect to these figures to […]

The U.S. Government’s Disregard of the Jewish Holocaust

In the 1930s, Adolf Hitler rose to power and lead the Nazi party to discriminate and murder people of the Jewish race. In the span of four years, millions of innocent civilians were killed. During that time, citizens of the United States had at most their condolences to offer, and the government did almost nothing until the U.S. was directly attacked. Most of the population expressed extreme anti-Semitism toward Jewish people. If they had not been so hesitant to aid […]

Genocide in Germany: the Holocaust

There is much speculation as to why Adolf Hitler may have hated Jewish people so fervently. Some historians suspect that it could be related to his heritage; Hitler's father Alois was born out of wedlock, and there were rumors that he might have been of Jewish descent. Adolf did not have a healthy relationship with his father, leading some to believe that this is a possible explanation for his contempt. Another possible case for Hitler's disgust for Jewish people could […]

Gender and Sexuality: a Historiography and Analysis of the Holocaust

The Holocaust: a genocide in which Nazi Germany, aided by local collaborators, systematically murdered millions of people between 1941 and 1945; an event made possible through meticulous planning and manipulation across multiple dimensions. In an attempt for ultimate control, Hitler preyed upon the vulnerabilities of pre-existing stereotypes and stigmas surrounding gender and sexuality and manipulated his followers in accepting these ideologies. In fact, is arguable that everyone involved within the Holocaust (men, women, children, homosexuals, Jews, those of minority ethnicity, […]

Adolf Hitler and Responsibility for the Holocaust

Adolf Hitler became leader of Germany in 1933. Adolf was a soldier for Germany in the first world war. Germany lost the war due to betrayal from within. Socialists, communists, and particularly Jews were blamed. Hitler joined a new extreme right wing party, The National Socialists German workers Party. He would inspire people with his speeches. On April 1st, 1933 the Nazi party began their plan to remove Jews from society by announcing a boycott against all Jewish-owned businesses. Laws […]

Elie Wiesel and his Father in Night – the Impact of War on Relationships

Elie Wiesel and His Father: A Bond Amidst Atrocities In the Holocaust, 6 million European Jews were murdered because of their race to German. Hitler treated the Jews harshly because the Jews were accused of their racial character. The group of Jews who are homosexuals and gypsies was persecuted. According to the memoir “Night,” written by Elie Wiesel, Jews were sent to concentration camps in wagons with less oxygen and leftover food. Elie bore witness to Holocaust. He witnessed the […]

Jehovah Witnesses during the Holocaust

Jehovah witnesses were one of the groups targeted by Nazi Germany for elimination on religious ground. During the rise of the Nazi, the group had a small but active following in Germany. The problem with the group, as far as Nazis were concerned, is that they were against fighting into the army purposes of waging war. Therefore, their religious teachings were against the Nazi Germany goal of world domination through war and a new beginning of the German nation. The […]

Psychological Pain and Victims of Holocaust

The physical suffering that was experienced by Jewish victims of the Holocaust, through the Nazi's regime of systematic annihilation, is widely known. However, the impact of this trauma was not just at the physical level. The violent and devastating realities of the Holocaust inherently created an intense strain on Jewish religious and spiritual identity. Through the analysis of three primary sources, a memoir, a sermon, and a prayer, I will demonstrate how this strain lead to a variety of theological […]

The Holocaust – Failure of Humanity

The holocaust is not only a tragedy of the Jewish people, it is a failure of humanity as a whole -Moshe Katsav. The holocaust was started by the Germans. Their leader and the person who caused the holocaust to start was named Adolf Hitler. He was wrong for what he did to the Jews and it was inhuman. The human race as a whole failed because we could have done something to stop the holocaust or prevent it from getting […]

Deaths :Around 6 million Jews
Start date :1941
Motive :Antisemitism, racism
Location :Nazi Germany, German-occupied Europe

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How To Write An Essay On The Holocaust

Introduction to writing about the holocaust.

When undertaking the task of writing an essay on the Holocaust, it's crucial to approach the subject with a deep sense of respect and historical responsibility. The Holocaust, one of the darkest periods in human history, saw the systematic, state-sponsored persecution and murder of six million Jews by the Nazi regime and its collaborators. In your introduction, establish the context of the Holocaust, providing a brief historical background. It's important to acknowledge the sensitivity of the topic and set a tone that is both informative and reflective. Your thesis should clearly state the specific focus of your essay, whether it’s an analysis of the events, an exploration of the consequences, or a discussion of the lessons learned.

Exploring the Historical Context and Events

The main body of your essay should delve into the specific aspects of the Holocaust you wish to explore. If focusing on the historical context, discuss the political and social climate that led to the rise of Nazism in Germany. For essays examining the events of the Holocaust, detail the implementation of the Final Solution, the establishment of ghettos, and the operation of concentration and extermination camps. Use credible sources to support your analysis and include personal accounts where possible to provide a more vivid and human perspective on the atrocities. It’s crucial to handle these details with care, avoiding sensationalism and focusing on factual, respectful representation.

Addressing the Impact and Aftermath

In addition to exploring the events themselves, your essay should consider the impact and aftermath of the Holocaust. Discuss the profound effects on survivors, including the psychological trauma and the loss of entire communities. Explore the subsequent Nuremberg Trials and the establishment of international laws against genocide as a direct response to the Holocaust. Reflect on the global implications of the Holocaust on future generations and its role in shaping contemporary discussions on human rights, racism, and anti-Semitism. This part of your essay should underscore the far-reaching consequences of the Holocaust, both for those directly affected and for the world at large.

Concluding with Reflection and Responsibility

Conclude your essay by summarizing the key points of your analysis and reflecting on the broader significance of understanding the Holocaust. Emphasize the importance of remembering and learning from this tragic event to prevent similar atrocities in the future. Your conclusion should also address the responsibility of individuals and societies to combat hatred, intolerance, and discrimination. A well-crafted conclusion will not only bring closure to your essay but will also inspire a sense of moral responsibility and the need for continued vigilance in protecting human dignity and rights.

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HIST B323 History of the Holocaust

  • Finding Books
  • Sources for Researching the Holocaust
  • Develop a Research Question
  • Primary Sources
  • Cite Sources
  • Scholarly vs Popular
  • Thesis Statements

See subsections for help:

Developing a research question, distinguishing primary and secondary sources, citing sources, distinguishing scholarly and popular articles, developing thesis statements.

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Introducing the Writing Prompt

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In the first four lessons of the unit, students explore questions about identity, stereotyping, and group membership. This assessment step introduces students to a writing prompt that builds on these important themes and connects them to the history students explore later in this unit. The prompt is designed to serve as both a thematic frame for the unit and a final writing assignment at the unit’s end.

Unit Writing Prompt:

What does learning about the choices people made during the Weimar Republic, the rise of the Nazi Party, and the Holocaust teach us about the power and impact of our choices today?

Because the students have not yet been introduced to the Weimar era, the rise of the Nazi Party, and the Holocaust, this lesson begins with a modified version of the prompt:

Modified Writing Prompt for this Lesson:

How does learning about the choices people made throughout history help us understand the power and impact of our choices in the world today?

This modified prompt enables students to think through larger themes about history and decision making before delving into the specific history in later lessons. This lesson’s activities provide suggestions to help students start to understand the meaning of the prompt and to stake out a preliminary position in response to it. At key points later in this unit (after Lessons 8, 13, 18, 21, and 23), you will be prompted to give students the opportunity to revisit the prompt and consider stories, documents, and other evidence from history that may influence their thinking about it. At these times, students will also have the opportunity to reflect back on, and potentially modify, the initial position they articulate in this lesson.

There are two additional writing prompts that can be used as summative assessments for this unit included in Facing History’s  Common Core Writing Prompts and Strategies: Holocaust and Human Behavior . This resource includes lesson plans and writing strategies to help guide students through all phases of the writing process.

Essential Question

Guiding Question

Why study history?

Learning Objective

Students will develop an initial position for an argumentative essay in response to a question about the importance and impact of choices in history.

What's Included

This assessment is designed to fit into one 50-min class period and includes:

  • 3 activities
  • 5 teaching strategies
  • 1 assessment
  • 1 extension activity

Preparing to Teach

Notes to the teacher.

Anticipation Guide Activity

This lesson introduces the  Anticipation Guides  teaching strategy. You might return to the handout  Why Study History? later in the unit to see if students’ ideas about the study of history have changed.

Duration: 1 class period

Related Materials

  • Teaching Strategy Anticipation Guides

Save this resource for easy access later.

Warm Up with an Anticipation Guide

Before the activity begins, hang four signs in the corners of the classroom that read “Strongly Agree,” “Agree,” “Disagree,” and “Strongly Disagree.”

Pass out the handout  Why Study History?  and ask students to read the statements and decide if they strongly agree, agree, disagree, or strongly disagree with each one. They should circle their responses and then write a brief explanation for each choice.

Use the  Four Corners  strategy to debrief the anticipation guide. Read each statement aloud and ask students to stand near one of the signs in the classroom to indicate their response. After students find their positions, ask them to explain their thinking to others in their corner.

Next, ask students in each corner to share their ideas with the rest of the class. As one corner disagrees with another, encourage students to respond directly to each other’s statements and have a mini-debate about the prompt. If students’ ideas change due to the debate, tell them that they are free to switch corners.

  • Teaching Strategy Four Corners

Generate Initial Responses to a Modified Essay Prompt

Next, ask students to return to their seats and take out their journals so they can reflect on the Four Corners activity and start to think about a new and related question.

Write the modified essay topic on the board and ask students to respond to it in their journals. Students might also reference their ideas about one or more of the quotations on the handout Why Study History? when formulating their responses.

Next, ask students to debrief the journal prompt in a  Think, Pair, Share  discussion. Ask students to try to support their thinking with an example from the history they have studied or their own lives. Finally, ask students to share a few opinions or ideas with the larger group.

Tell students that they will build on these ideas in the upcoming weeks as they learn about the history of Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. They can keep all their notes about these ideas in their journals and use them later to help them think about their essays.

  • Teaching Strategy Think-Pair-Share

Exit Tickets

Give each student an  exit ticket  with the following question:

Did today’s class affect your thinking about why we should study history? Did it affect how you think about the connection between the choices people made in history and the choices you make in your own life? If so, explain how. If not, explain why not.

Collect the exit tickets as students leave the classroom. You might share some interesting ideas or patterns at the start of the next lesson. Unless you have permission from the student, we recommend that you keep these anonymous.

  • Teaching Strategy Exit Tickets

Check for Understanding

Observe carefully the discussion that occurs during the Four Corners activity in order to check students’ understanding of the themes embedded in the writing prompt. It is important that every student has the opportunity to talk, either in the small groups in their corners or when sharing with the whole group.

Evaluate students’ responses on the exit cards. While their thinking about the writing prompt will evolve over time, check now for evidence that they have a basic understanding of the question itself.

Dissect the Essay Writing Prompt

If your class is ready, you might introduce the full unit writing prompt, rather than the one modified for this lesson. Using the  Dissecting the Prompt  strategy, students can take apart and analyze the prompt, identifying the historical topics they need to learn more about in the rest of the unit to be able to fully answer the question. This will establish several inquiry questions for the class that are related to students’ broader thinking about the purpose of studying history in this lesson.

  • Teaching Strategy Dissecting the Prompt

Materials and Downloads

Quick downloads, download the files, get files via google, explore the materials, common core writing prompts and strategies: holocaust and human behavior, universe of obligation.

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150 Holocaust Essay Topics & Examples

Looking for good titles for a Holocaust project? This is one of the most tragic parts of WW2 that is definitely worth studying.

🔝 Top 10 Holocaust Questions for Essays

📝 holocaust essay: how to write, 🏆 holocaust essay examples & topics, 📌 holocaust thesis ideas, ✍️ holocaust essay topics for college, 💡 most interesting holocaust topics to write about, ❓ holocaust essay questions.

The most popular Holocaust essay topics are:

  • The Holocaust and its causes
  • Nazi human experiments as a part of the Holocaust
  • Jewish ghettos in Poland
  • The establishment of Auschwitz concentration camp
  • The consequences of the Holocaust

Below you can find much more ideas. In this article, we’ve collected Holocaust thesis ideas and questions for essays. They will suite for middle school, high school, and college-level assignments. You’ll also find tips on writing your introduction, conclusion, and formulating a thesis statement, together with Holocaust essay examples. Write an ️A+ paper with us!

  • What were the ideological causes of the Holocaust?
  • How was anti-Jewish legislation in Germany established?
  • What were the goals of the Nazi Euthanasia Program?
  • How and where were the largest ghettos created?
  • How did the concentration camp system expand across Europe?
  • What were the three types of ghettos?
  • How did the resistance efforts in the ghettos look like?
  • Who were the key opponents of Nazism inside and outside Germany?
  • How did the US government respond to Nazism?
  • What were the consequences of the Holocaust?

The Holocaust has affected millions of people around the world. It is one of the most tragic and problematic topics of history. Holocaust essays help students to understand the issue better, analyzing its causes and consequences.

Organizing an essay on the Holocaust may be challenging, as there are many aspects to cover. We have developed some tips to help you through the process.

First, choose the Holocaust issue you want to discuss. Select one of the titles to work on. Some of the Holocaust essay topics include:

  • Concentration camps in today’s Europe
  • Lessons from the Holocaust: Fostering tolerance
  • Present and future of the Holocaust research
  • The causes of the Holocaust and discrimination against Jewish people
  • How could people have stopped the Holocaust?
  • Political issues behind the Holocaust
  • The effects of the Holocaust on its survivors
  • The factors and issues that contributed to Nazism

You can choose one of these holocaust essay questions or ask your professor for suggestions. Once that you have selected the topic of your essay, you can start working on the paper.

A well-developed structure is highly significant for an outstanding essay. Here are some tips on how to develop a structure for the paper:

  • Think of the Holocaust essay prompts you want to discuss first. You can do preliminary research to see what issues you should cover.
  • Ask your professor about the type of essay you should write. If it is an argumentative essay, you will need to leave space for at least one refutation paragraph and a rebuttal paragraph.
  • Include an introductory paragraph (or several paragraphs if you are working on a longer essay). This paragraph should include the background information on the Holocaust and the problem you have selected. Discuss the goals of the paper and state your main claim at the end of this section.
  • The main arguments of your paper will comprise body paragraphs. You may want to dedicate at least one separate paragraph for each of your claims. The number of body paragraphs is up to you, however, we would recommend including at least three of them. Hint: Make smooth transitions between paragraphs to make your paper look more organized.
  • Remember that at least one body paragraph should state the general information about the Holocaust, its causes, and effects. You may discuss statistical data, global consequences, and primary victims.
  • While working on a refutation paragraph, do not forget to prove that your arguments are more reasonable that the opposing perspectives. You can dedicate a separate paragraph for a rebuttal.
  • A concluding section or a summary should state your main arguments again. You can also include a recommendation if necessary.
  • Important tip: Do not make your paragraphs too short or too long. We would recommend writing between 65 and 190 words per paragraph and not more than 35 words per sentence. Making all body paragraphs of similar length is also a good idea that will make your paper look more professional.
  • Ask your professor whether you need to include a title page and table of contents. Remember that a reference page is a must, as it includes all sources from the essay.
  • If you are not sure that the selected structure is good, search for the holocaust essay titles and examples online and see how other students organize their papers. Avoid copying the works you will find.

Remember to look at the samples on our website to get some ideas for your excellent paper!

  • The Holocaust: Poem “Tears of Blood” The extermination of the Roma was part of the general policy of the National Socialists to destroy political opponents, homosexual people, terminally and mentally ill, drug addicts, and Jews.
  • Holocaust vs. Japanese Colonial Era in Korea The Holocaust in the history of Jewish people, as well as Japanese occupation in the history of Korean people, was one of the greatest tragedies.
  • Reinhard Heydrich’s Role in the Holocaust With the help of his boss: Himmler[7], they used political forces to influence the police in an attempt to ensure the consolidation of the Nazi administration in the entire nation of Germany[8].
  • US Holocaust Policy During World War II However, the anti-Nazi campaign was not successful, and the main reason for this was the harsh foreign policy of the USA.
  • Reasons Why the Jews Failed to Resist the Holocaust The award-winning book brings the readers to the lives and experiences of Vladek Spiegelman, a holocaust survivor, and his father during the period.
  • Discussion of Holocaust and Immigration In “Holocaust Education and Remembrance in Australia,” Suzanne D.and Suzanne H.discuss the adverse effects and after-issues of immigration among the Jewish community and how it led to the concept that the Holocaust had a long-lasting […]
  • The Holocaust and the Nakba: Tragedy and Trauma The Nakba refers to the destruction of hundreds of cities and towns and the Palestinian people’s cultural, economic, political, and social backgrounds.
  • Holocaust Commemoration in the US Holocaust Memorial Museum This paper is relevant to the understanding of virtual exhibit since it highlights the major notions of memorialization that are included in the exhibition.
  • Holocaust: Traditions and Encounters He was the only presenter in the video: he revealed the question about Sephardic Jews in the Holocaust and answered questions from the audience.
  • Holocaust: Taking Steps Toward Evil To the Nazi leader, the Jews were an inferior race and were an alien threat to the German racial purity. The Germans blamed the Jews for having lost the World War 1 and accused them […]
  • A Visit to the Holocaust Museum Houston The museum emphasizes the perils of intolerance, bigotry, and apathy by drawing on the lessons of the Holocaust and other massive genocides.
  • “Holocaust Horror…” by Moore A considerable number of young people do not have the correct knowledge, and the most disturbing fact is that the Holocaust started to be interpreted in different ways.
  • The Relationship Between Epigenetics and the Effects of the Holocaust Tests are most likely to identify existing changes of DNA and the proteins related to DNA, which are responsible for the structure of the DNA and the availability of other elements related to the DNA.
  • Holocaust and Bosnian Genocide Comparison The current paper aims to compare some of the most notable genocides in history, the Holocaust, and the Bosnian mass murder in terms of their aims, death tolls, tactics, and methods.
  • The Terror of the Holocaust in the Book “Hana’s Suitcase” by Karen Levine The story “Hana’s Suitcase” by Karen Levine is not fiction, where heroes and the plot are the imagination of the author; it is a documentary story where the situation and named people are real, they […]
  • The Holocaust and Schindler’s List: Transforming the Human Perception of Violence The World War II genocide of Jews, known as the Holocaust, changed both the Jewish history and the history of the world, transforming the human perception of violence and religious conflicts.
  • The Holocaust as a History-Cultural Phenomenon The Holocaust in the narrow sense represents the persecution and mass extermination of Jews who inhabited the German lands, the territories of Hitler’s allies, and the areas occupied during the war.
  • Art Spiegelman’s Graphic Novel “Maus I: A Survivor’s Tale”: Author’s Understanding of the Holocaust Spiegelman uses mice to represent Jews because of the oppression they experienced while in Hitler’s concentration camps. The mistreatment the Jews experienced is similar to what mice experience in the presence of cats.
  • Holocaust Museum Exhibition “State of Deception” Generally, evaluating a variety of facts from different sources, it becomes evident that the exhibition “State of Deception: The Power of Nazi Propaganda” in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum can be seen as rather […]
  • Critique of Elie Wiesel’s Holocaust Book “Night” Like many books on the Holocaust, Elie Wiesel’s Night is a dramatic picture of the horror times in the history of humankind and particularly in the history of the Jewish people.
  • Holocaust: Ethnic and Cultural Diversity and the Real Face of Prejudice The holocaust refers to the murder of six million European Jews in the course of the Second World War. The holocaust was the highest level of prejudice in society during the time.
  • German Attitudes Towards Third Reich and Holocaust Commemoration The Goldhagen debate represents a shift in the attitude of the Germans regarding the commemoration of the Third Reich and the remembrance of the holocaust.
  • Human Response to Holocaust in “Nightfather” and “Fugitive Pieces” It is his memory of the nightmare that keeps him imprisoned, he appears in the camp again and again by the volition of his memory that is eager to play painful tricks with him.
  • Holocaust Denial: Dynamics of Ethics While keeping this in mind, we will analyze the introduction of “holocaust denial” criminal charges into the penal code of many Western countries that simultaneously take pride in the fact that their democratic form of […]
  • Jewish Family’s Experiences During the Holocaust Piecing together everything that I learned from my grandparents and parents, I have come to realize that I was shaped early on by the experience of my ancestors in the Holocaust and in Russia.
  • The Holocaust: Auschwitz Concentration Camp History In an attempt to dehumanize the victims of the Nazis and as a testament to the resilience of a few of the inmates of the camps, the mentality of the brutal Nazis is worth a […]
  • Henry Orenstein: Holocaust Survivor and Entrepreneur The Nazi regime, were under the impression that the Germans were ‘racially superior’ to the Jews and believed that the Jews were somehow lesser than them.
  • The Holocaust: Historical Analysis The Holocaust, now the example of Jewish pain, has long stopped to be a piece of history, and is now regarded by spiritual and material alike, as a piece of divinity – a sacred text […]
  • Holocaust Tragedy in Nazi Germany Since the forties of the twentieth century, another such theory, called the Holocaust, came into use in the context of the mass extermination of Jews in Europe by the Nazis. It is the education of […]
  • A Visit to the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC People visited the museum to learn about the atrocities caused to the Jews by the Nazi administration, headed by Hitler. The other piece I learned is that in the museum there was a video of […]
  • Holocaust in “Maus” Graphic Novel by Art Spiegelman It is quite peculiar that Spiegelman uses only the black-and-white color perhaps, this is another means to emphasize the gloomy atmosphere of the Nazi invasion and the reign of the anti-Semite ideas.
  • Post-Holocaust and Imprisonment Literary Works It is possible that Celan uses repetition to express the feelings of repetitiveness that he and the other people felt during the imprisonment.
  • The Poetry of the Holocaust Period In conclusion, it seems appropriate to state that Sutzkever is a metaphysical poet as his creative thought focuses on the beauty of nature and the truthful presentation of events.
  • The Public Memory of the Holocaust In addition to his pain, Levi concerns the increasing temporal distance and habitual indifference of hundreds of millions of people towards the Holocaust and the survivors1 It causes the feeling of anxiety that was fuelled […]
  • History of the Holocaust They can be outlined as follows: the historical legacy of anti-Semitism in Europe, the particulars of the German national character /the fact that the Nazis did succeed in dehumanizing the Jews, and the irrational hatred […]
  • Holocaust and Stuttgart Declaration of Guilt This paper is devoted to the analysis of the Holocaust in general and the Stuttgart Declaration of Guilt in particular. The judges represented the states which were the main winners in the war: Great Britain, […]
  • Holocaust Memorial Museum Textiles, for example, badges, uniforms, flags, costumes, and banners are also housed in the museum. Other types of materials housed in the museum are works on paper, such as announcements, posters, broadsides, and maps.
  • Holocaust in “Survival in Auschwitz” by Primo Levi Another issue that needs to be discussed is that the economy of Germany was hurt because of the World War I, and it has affected the pride of the nation.
  • 1942-1945 Holocaust: Nazi Germany’s Political Reasons Started in 1942 and taking place until the end of the war, the Holocaust was the genocide of Jewish people arranged by Hitler and implemented by the Nazi army.
  • Holocaust, Antisemitism, and Propaganda That is why, nowadays great attention is given to issues which led to the death of millions of people. Being a part of the ideology of Nazism, it led to the elimination of a great […]
  • The Holocaust Effects: Books “Tzili” and “Wartime Lies” The natural experiences of growing up are changed and twisted by the war and its horrors, but the specific developments, their perceptions, and impacts are affected by the children’s personalities and circumstances of their lives, […]
  • Nazi Medical Experiments During the Holocaust The information is maintained by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. This photograph is maintained and produced by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
  • The Holocaust and Jehovas Witnesses The concept of “spiritual resistance” in the case of members of Jehovah’s Witness during the era of the Nazis in Germany focused primarily on continuing the acts associated with their faith despite the persecution they […]
  • Holocaust: Nazi Anti-Jewish Policies and Actions The major policy that the Nazi implemented was the Law for the Restoration of the Professional Civil Service that excluded Jews from government jobs.
  • Holocaust and Nazi’s Racial Imperialism The scholar argues that the event was a result of the racial imperialism championed by the Nazi Party in the country.
  • Holocaust Experience in the Book ‘Night’ by Elie Wiesel Eliezer’s depiction in the story as the main character in the story is that of a humble and religious young man.
  • History of the Jews and the Holocaust The Nazi regime and its partners became the pioneers of the Holocaust. That being the case, the anti-Semitism ideas and prejudices experienced in Germany before the Second World War led to the infamous Holocaust.
  • Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory by Deborah Lipstadt The book is divided into chapters that focus on the history and methods that are used to distort the truth and the memory of the Holocaust.
  • The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Since its inception in 1993, the museum has served as the nation’s reminder when it comes to issues of the holocaust.
  • Iran and Israel’s Nuclear Holocaust and the Gulf Cooperation Council’s Position As such conflict would put a serious threat to the safety of the region, the policy aims at the acceptance of nuclear deal and the development of the effective course of actions aimed at eliminating […]
  • Liberal Democracy, Anti-Semitism and the Holocaust The Nazis and other populist political movements in Germany believed that the Jews had undue influence in the country through their prominent positions in the media and the financial system4.
  • Was the Holocaust the failure of or the product of Modernity? The date that traditionally marks the beginning of modernist era is 1453, when the City of Constantinople was conquered by the Turkish Ottoman Empire, as far as this date symbolized the end of the Byzantine […]
  • Reconsidering the History: Holocaust Denial. The XXI Century Prospects Despite the fact that Holocaust was one of the hideous crimes against the humanity that is never to occur again, some tend to represent the tragic event as the stage of the history that people […]
  • Nazi Germany & Holocaust The Nazi movement is a revolutionary movement that was associated with the mass murder of Jews and Communists in an attempt to restore the reputation of Germany at the international level. The Nazi regime under […]
  • The Holocaust and Nazi Germany The rise of the Nazis to power in 1933 led to the establishment of thousands of concentration camps, which were centers of mass murders of Jews.
  • The Holocaust and Jews Extermination The Nazis perceived Internationalism in the context of the Holocaust to be a global perspective primarily held and advocated by Jews who were using it as a method designed to dominate the whole world.
  • The Holocaust: Analysis of Life in the Kovno, Warsaw and Lodz Ghettos Due to the continued capturing and shooting of the Jews at the forts, Rabbi Shapiro felt that the Jews should be separated from the Lithuanians to live into the Ghetto and thus a seven member […]
  • How Holocaust Has Been Projected by the Different Historians Over the Years? Several historians claimed that it was unfair as it was an act of barbarism and it promoted wicked behavior with the innocent people of Jewish community while on the other hand, it was said that […]
  • Jewish Insight of Holocaust Holocaust, the extermination of Jews from the European land was the example of brutality and viciousness of the Nazi Germany. Meanwhile, many historians were observing the situation critically and wanted to present their ideas about […]
  • Shooting At the Holocaust Museum According to the incident report, von Brunn entered the museum and shot the guard. His motive was to hold the board members who were in the building hostage for the economic difficulties that the country […]
  • The Nazi Holocaust’s Effects This study aims at analyzing the claim that social and psychological effects of the Holocaust linger in areas of political systems in which the survivors of the holocaust currently reside.
  • The History of the Holocaust Hitler said that the root cause of the problems were the despicable Jews of Europe. The direct victims were the Jews but the rest of the world understood the consequences of inaction and the lack […]
  • Holocaust and the Cold War Cold war refers to the military and political tension between the United States of America and the Soviet Union immediately after the World War 2.
  • Doris Bergen: Nazi’s Holocaust Program in “War and Genocide” The discussion of the Holocaust cannot be separated from the context of the World War II because the Nazi ideology of advancing the Aryans and murdering the undesirable people became one of the top reasons […]
  • The ‘Banality’ of Abstraction: Western Philosophy’s Failure to Address the Moral Implications of the Holocaust Additionally, I would like to address the relationship of Arendt and Heidegger in the context of The Holocaust, and the effect that it had upon their philosophical works.
  • Conduction of The Holocaust Propaganda against Jews The common media the Nazis used for the campaign against the Jews was the Weekly Nazis newspaper, “The attacker”.
  • Does Global English Mean Linguistic Holocaust? It is not difficult to find examples of the extinction of languages in the wake of the introduction of English. Some of the most active areas of extinction include the American West, where a variety […]
  • The Horror of the Holocaust in Different Styles of Writing One of the thematic thread that unites these three works of the writers from different countries is their attempt to reproduce how cruel and unfair the actions of the Nazi were. The Holocaust, the judgment […]
  • Peter Eisenman; Building Germany, the Holocaust Memorial The Jews were not the Nazi’s only victims during the holocaust, other casualties were the weak and disabled people in the society, who were killed on the pretext of the Euthanasia program.
  • The Holocaust: A German Historian Examines the Genocide The Holocaust: A German Historian Examines the Genocide deals with one of the most debatable issues of the history of the twentieth century, i.e.
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How to Get Holocaust Education Right

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“Educate them about the Holocaust.”

That’s the rallying cry for many of those who feel shocked by skyrocketing antisemitism and Islamophobia on college campuses and K-12 schools. Learning about the Final Solution, the reasoning goes, steers young Americans against bigotry.

As the grandson of Auschwitz and Buchenwald survivors and an educator and documentary filmmaker who often tells Holocaust-related stories, I used to subscribe to this notion. But I’ve come to realize that despite being embedded in K-12 social studies, world history, and English literature curricula throughout the country, Holocaust education has failed to uproot hate and ignorance.  

Social media, where teens spend about five hours a day on average, teem with “ Holocaust denial and distortion ,” as well as antisemitic and Islamophobic conspiracy theories. The latest, for instance, falsely blames the Jews for Congress’ TikTok crackdown . No wonder K-12 schools’ incidents of antisemitism and Islamophobia have skyrocketed , even before the Israel-Hamas War erupted and broke the hydrant of hatred wide open.

Read More: Who Needs Holocaust Remembrance Day in 2024?

In recent weeks, a flood of Israel-Hamas War-related hostility has forced an increasing number of university administrations around the country—such as Columbia, the University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Southern California—to summon the police in an attempt to quell student protests. Columbia moved all classes online on the eve of Passover, suspended some protesters , and threatened to expel those who’d occupied a campus building. USC revamped its commencement plans. And although most protests have played out as legitimate political activism reminiscent of the 1960s student movements, some have reportedly crossed the line into antisemitic and Islamophobic vitriol and violence.

On campuses and schoolyards, Jews and Muslims have suffered physical and psychological harm—from being jabbed in the face by a flagpole and requiring hospitalization to being called “terrorists” and needing mental-health counseling. The U.S. Department of Education’s Civil Rights Office has been investigating several universities and school districts.

Holocaust education, in its foundational intention, was supposed to nip much of this in the bud. Taught at elementary, middle, and high schools throughout the country since the 1970s, it’s been positioned for wide impact. Twenty-six states require the instruction of the Holocaust. Most of the other states have funded commissions and councils to advance opportunities to educate students about the Nazis’ murder of 6 million Jews and millions of people with disabilities, homosexuals, and Romani people, among other groups.

Read More: The Holocaust Began Not With Concentration Camps, But With Hateful Rhetoric. That Part of the Story Cannot Be Forgotten

Historically, conservatives and liberals alike have embraced Holocaust education. The 2020 Never Again Education Act passed by a 393-5 vote at the U.S. House of Representatives and unanimously at the U.S. Senate. Further setting Holocaust education up for success, nonprofits ranging from USC’s Shoah Foundation in Los Angeles to the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC, have been supporting teachers for decades. Organization like Pittsburgh-based Classroom Without Borders have taken educators to the sites of Nazi death camps in Eastern Europe. On May 5, March of the Living is sending teachers and students, as well as the chancellors and presidents of SUNY (State University of New York), Towson, and other universities, to Poland. Stateside, 85 Holocaust museums and memorials have hosted countless school field trips.

Yet, Holocaust education has fallen far short even of its fundamental goal to raise awareness. Polls show young Americans lack “basic knowledge” about the Holocaust. About two-thirds know nothing or very little about Auschwitz and grossly underestimate the number of Jewish victims.

Alarming conversations I’ve had with students make it impossible for me to ignore these statistics. Following a university screening of a rough-cut of one of my documentaries, “ Cojot ,” two freshmen sheepishly told me they’d “never heard of this.” I assured them few have heard of French business consultant Michel Cojot’s quest to kill his father’s Nazi executioner.

Shaking their heads, the freshmen said they’d “never heard about any of this.”

They were talking about the Holocaust.

The encounter sent me on a mission of my own: help fulfill Holocaust education’s promise. I started by contemplating what knowledge, insights, and skills their students must obtain to put antisemitism and Islamophobia in the rearview mirror.

A couple of observations informed my thinking about the knowledge part of the equation: Traditional Holocaust education’s emphasis on disseminating historical facts has generated disappointing results and, in the long run, even A-students retain only a fraction of the information they absorb in school. They ofttimes memorize a lesson, regurgitate it on a test, then discard it from their brains.

So I focused on insights and skills, which tend to be stickier. An understanding of how democracies function and malfunction can stay with children and adolescents for life, sharpening their worldview and lending them a moral compass. Critical thinking, fact-finding, and active listening can boost empathy and productive civic discourse, enabling students to better navigate the present, past, and future.

In building this approach, I combined old methods in a new way. For a pedagogical anchor, I turned to practitioner inquiry, also called action research. This well-regarded yet underutilized professional development (PD) mechanism helps K-12 teachers examine and improve their practice. I hypothesized that although it was rarely if ever used in such a way, practitioner inquiry would upgrade Holocaust education when fitted with four lenses: contextual responsiveness, which enables educators to make their lessons relevant to the here and now; trauma-informed, which steers them away from age-inappropriate material and assists them in identifying and coping with trauma in their classrooms and schools; apolitical educational equity, which values every child and adolescent; and asset-based, which directs teachers’ attention to their students and communities’ strengths. 

To test this properly, I founded the nonpartisan, pedagogically orientated Holocaust, Genocide and Human Rights Education Initiative at Penn State . It provides PD programs in five states and counting to K-12 educators, many of whom know what but not how to effectively teach difficult topics.

The first rule of the initiative—to borrow a phrase from David Fincher’s “Fight Club”—is you do not have to talk about the Holocaust. Research my colleagues and I have conducted indicates the effective instruction of any difficult topic, be it slavery or evolution or gender, can get at the Holocaust’s underlying causes.

Participants in the initiative’s programs, who represent various roles, disciplines, and grade levels, choose a difficult topic from their curriculum or community. They learn to teach it confidently by conjuring up compelling questions, finding credible sources, collecting and analyzing data, examining the findings with experts and colleagues, drawing up an implementation plan, and applying it in their classrooms and schools. Thus, they meet their students where they are in authentic ways.

Our participants, who include nearly as many music and biology as social studies and English teachers, empower their students to come up with their own guiding questions and seek the truth and its implications for themselves. To teach in this unconventional manner, educators must shift from acting as sages on the stage to setting the stage for their students’ experiential learning.

This mindset change typically requires a mind-twisting effort. Why would teachers—already overburdened meeting state, district, and parental expectations—add this to their trays? Their motivations range from resetting the tone in their classroom to removing the perception of indoctrination to redefining student success. A longtime elementary school teacher, for instance, aimed to make her Civil War lessons more thought-provoking. “I was interested in ways to help my students think for themselves,” she told me. And a mid-career middle-school teacher sought to instill empathy in her seventh-graders. Referencing Jim Crow and Nazi propaganda, she challenged her students to investigate her thesis that “if you spend enough time talking negatively about people, you start to believe it.”

She tasked her students with logging “everything they said and heard in one day.” The hands-on assignment opened the seventh-graders’ eyes and, eventually, hearts. They reported hearing numerous hurtful judgements and “conversations about fighting,” the middle-school teacher said. “The data collected were overwhelmingly negative.” In the following weeks, the students “wanted to talk about it more” and grew to “understand why they do what they do and reassess what they say about each other.”

Much of K-12 looks far into the future. Ace biology or math now and become a doctor or coder later. Difficult topics inquiry offers students immediately useful takeaways. The empathy and active-listening skills they develop can enrich their inner and social lives. The two-way respect they forge with peers and adults can bolster their communications and self-esteem.

To give students a brighter outlook, individually and collectively, and fortify our democracy, we must reinvent how we teach difficult topics. We must trust students to chart a constructive course for themselves and society. This will forge a sense of control that can propel students on journeys of discovery, during which they learn to conduct primary research, triangulate the information they gather, seek multiple perspectives, and dialogue and debate with classmates. Ultimately, too, it would prompt our next generation to wonder why any student ever chose echo-chamber scorn over face-to-face, heated-yet-respectful civic discourse.

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Oskar Schindler: The Man and the Hero (Holocaust Essays)

Holocaust essays, holocaust essays:, oskar schindler: the man and the hero.

The following are essays created by a class studying the Holocaust. If you’d like to send your comments, please contact the instructor,

by April N. Aberly

The purpose of this paper is to shed a different kind of light on who and how we consider a hero. I’ve tried to express what kind of a life and person Oskar Schindler was, and I ask you to evaluate yourself and decide if you could take the kind of risks Oskar Schindler did. As you learn about a man full of flaws just like the rest of us, I know that you too will appreciate the fact that an ordinary man can do extraordianry things.

What is a hero? In my book, a hero can be any number of things. A hero can be someone who loves and cares for you, someone you look up to, or maybe someone ordinary who does the extraordinary. Many people think of their favorite athlete or rockstar. Some may think of a famous speaker or activist. Whatever the case may be, most everyone has a hero. Oskar Schindler is a hero to over 6,000 Jews currently living across the United States and Europe (Hertling, 1997). Schindler was an ordinary man with extraordinary power that he used to save 1200 human lives during the Holocaust of World War II. The question arises : Who was Oskar Schindler the man? Where did he come from? More importantly, what was his motivation for saving so many Jews? Mainly, though, why is Schindler considered one of the greatest heroes of this century?

Oskar Schindler was born on April 28, 1908 in Zwitlau, which is now part of the present day Czech Republic. His father and mother, Hans and Louisa Schindler, were deeply religious. This resulted in a strong Catholic household for Schindler and his younger sister Elfriede Schindler. The Schindler family was one of the richest and most prominent in Zwitlau and elsewhere. This was due to the success of their family owned machinery business (“Schindler’s List,” 1995).

Schindler himself was a very tall and handsome man. Needless to say, he was adored by all the young women. His fancy, though, fell for a beautiful young girl named Emily. After only six weeks of courtship, they were married. Sadly, after only a few months of marriage, Schindler began to heavily abuse alcohol. He also had several affairs resulting in two children out of wedlock. In 1929, during the Great Depression, the Schindler family business went bankrupt. At this time, Schindler’s father left his mother, and she died soon after. Finding himself jobless, Schindler sought work in nearby Poland as a machinery salesmen (“Schindler’s List,” 1995).

The picture being painted of Schindler is not exactly one of high class and morals. Indeed, Schindler was an alcoholic and a womanizer. This leads many to think, how can this man be considered a hero? What would possess him, with all of his power and money, to risk his own life to save the lives of thousands of people he has never met? How did he do it? It was no easy task.

The saving of the first Schindler Jews began in 1939, when he came to Krakow in the wake of the German invasion. In Krakow, he took over two previously Jewish owned companies that dealt with the manufacture and sales of enamel kitchenware products. In one of the businesses, however, Schindler was merely a trustee. Looking more for his own power, he opened up a small enamel shop right outside of Krakow near the Jewish ghetto. Here, he employed mostly Jewish workers. This in turn saved them from being deported to labor camps. Then in 1942, Schindler found out through some of his workers that many of the local Krakow Jews were being sent to the brutal Plazow labor camp. This is where Schindler’s connections with the German government were so useful. Using his know how, he convinced the S. S. and the Armaments Administration, who had set up the Plazow labor camp, to set up a portion of the camp in his factory. They agreed, and Schindler took even those unfit and unqualified for work. In turn, he spared 900 Jewish lives from this one action (Paldiel, 1982).

Then in October of 1944, this time with the approach of the Russian army, Schindler used his connections to receive permission to reestablish his once defunct business as an armament production company in Bruunlitz. After some negotiating with S.S. officials, he was allowed to take with him some Jewish workers form Zalocie. Schindler then succeeded in transferring over 700 Jews from the Grossrosen camp, and another 300 women form Auschwitz. Once in Brunnlitz, these workers were given the best food, clothing, shelter, and medical care that Schindler could afford.

After this successful operation in Brunnlitz, Schindler received word that a train of evacuated Jews from the Golezow camp were stranded in the nearby city of Svitavy. As he had done twice before, Schindler pulled some strings at the top and got permission from German officials to take his workers to the nearby station to rescue the stranded. Once at the station, they forced the doors open to the rail car and removed some 100 half frozen Jews. Schindler’s wife Emile did her best to nurse the ill back to health. Those that did not survive were given a proper Jewish burial paid for by Schindler (Paldiel, 1982). Schindler spent infinite amounts of money not only paying for the upkeep of his workers, but paying the government. Schindler was arrested two times while trying to complete his saving operations. Each time, though, he found a new excuse, or paid a little more money. He risked his life, as well as his family’s lives, to save a race of people he never even knew.

In all of this the question still remains, why? Why did he do it? The answer is that there is no answer. Schindler would never comment on what he did. He never truly gave an answer as to why he did what he did. Ludwik Feigenbaum gave the best description of Schindler that made sense of his actions. “I don’t know what his motives were, even though I knew him very well. I asked him and I never got a clear answer and the film doesn’t make it clear, either. But I don’t give a damn. What’s important is that he saved our lives. Another survivor, Johnathan Dresner suggests, ” He was an adventurer. He was like an actor who always wanted to be center stage. He got into a play and he could not get out of it” (“Schindler’s List,” 1995).

No matter what anyone believes, the story of Schindler touched me. I think to myself, would I have the courage to give up my life for a bunch of strangers? Would I give up all of my comforts and riches with nothing in return? I am a bit bewildered by the story. I wish that I knew exactly why he did the things he did. Yet as the old saying goes, “Some things are better left unsaid.” I think that is what Schindler believed. He saw no reason to give a why. I think that is why he is a hero. He did not want all the pomp and circumstance. He did not want the hero status. I think he saw no reason to brag about what he had done. Schindler knew what it meant to himself and those that he saved, and that is all that mattered. Saving those lives was his return for giving up all he had. He died without much fanfare. He was bankrupt and his last few years were rough. He gave up everything he owned, literally. Yet it did not matter. He gave an unselfish love, of sorts, to the Jews. Schindler is indeed a hero for many reasons. Most importantly, he helped to save a race of human beings, just like you and me.

Hertling, Victoria. “The Making of Schindler’s List.” April 4, 1995. . (8 February 1997).

Paldiel, Mordecai. Encyclopedia of the Holocaust. Oskar Schindler. 1982. “Schindler’s List.” 1995. . (8 February 1997).

“Schindler’s List.” 1995. . (8 February 1997).

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<p>A transport of Jewish prisoners forced to march through the snow from the Bauschovitz train station to <a href="/narrative/5386">Theresienstadt</a>. Czechoslovakia, 1942.</p>

Browse an alphabetical list of curated media essays that explore various topics pertaining to the Holocaust and World War II. These essays give a brief overview of the topic and provide related media, including photographs, maps, oral histories, and films.

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1936 Olympics: Torch Relay

The 1936 Olympics in Berlin were the first to employ the torch relay, an Olympic ritual. The Nazi regime used the Olympics to present the false image of a peaceful Germany.

1936 Olympics: Torch Relay

82nd Airborne Division

The 82nd Airborne Division is recognized as one of the 36 liberating units of the US Army during World War II. On May 2, 1945, troops of the 82nd Airborne and the 8th Infantry Division overran Wöbbelin, a subcamp of t...

9th Armored Division

The 9th Armored Division is recognized as one of the 36 liberating units of the US Army during World War II. On May 8, 1945, troops of the 9th and 1st Infantry Divisions liberated two subcamps of the Flossenbürg conce...

Aaron Lejzerowicz: Maps

Born to a Jewish family in Poland, Aaron Lejzerowicz was endangered by the German invasions of Poland and the USSR. These maps offer a small glimpse of German military activity over the course of World War II—events w...

African American Soldiers during World War II

During World War II, African American and white soldiers who were bonded on the battlefie...

African American Soldiers during World War II

Aftermath of the Holocaust (Abridged Article) - Animated Map/Map

Aftermath of the holocaust (abridged article) - historical film footage, aftermath of the holocaust (abridged article) - oral histories.

The end of World War II brought new challenges for Jews who survived the Holocaust. In these oral histories, survivors describe personal experiences after the war.

Aftermath of the Holocaust (Abridged Article) - Photograph

Albert gani: maps.

Born to a Jewish family in Preveza, Albert Gani was endangered by the German occupation of Greece. In March 1944, the Nazis deported the Jews of Preveza to Auschwitz. Albert was killed several months later, at the age...

Alfred Rosenberg: Biography - Photographs

Alfred Rosenberg was one of the most influential Nazi ideologues. He held several positions in the Nazi Party over the course of his career. During World War II, Rosenberg played key roles in the looting of art and the implementation of the “Final S...

Aliyah Bet - Photograph

American jewish congress - photograph, american jewish joint distribution committee and refugee aid - photograph, amsterdam - animated map/map, amsterdam - id card/oral history, anna gutman (boros) visits rescuer dr. mohamed helmy after the war, anne frank (abridged article) - photograph, anne frank - photograph, anti-jewish legislation in prewar germany - photographs.

The Nazi regime issued more than 400 anti-Jewish decrees in its first six years of power. These policies gradually stripped Jews of their rights, livelihoods, and property. Altogether, the decrees functioned to sepa...

Antisemitism

The word antisemitism means prejudice against or hatred of Jews. The Holoca...

Antisemitism (Abridged Article) - ID Card/Oral History

The word antisemitism means prejudice against or hatred of Jews. The Holocaust is history’s most extreme example of antisemitism.

Antisemitism (Abridged Article) - Photograph

The word antisemitism means prejudice against or hatred of Jews. The Holocaust is history’s most extreme example of antisemitism.The Nazi Party spread antisemitic propag...

Antisemitism - Artifact/Document

The word antisemitism means prejudice against or hatred of Jews. The Holocaust is history’s most extreme example of antisemitism.These artifacts reflect some of the anti-Jewish policies that permeated daily life in the period of the Holocau...

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