Essay, Research Paper: Holocaust

In Memory of the Holocaust In Germany during World War II, 6 million Jews were exterminated by Nazis. Exterminated means to be destroyed completely. Extermination, however, is usually only enacted only upon animals. Sadly, the Jews were treated like pesky animals, and the Germans were the self-apointed exterminators. The mass murder of human life during World War II is what we now recognize as the holocaust. There is no doubt that the holocaust occured, but some question whether or not this tragedy should be part of a school curriculum.Night is a novel written by nobel prize winner Elie Wiesel. Elie is a holocaust survivor and his book vividly describes his experiences during the time he lived in Nazi concentration camps. Night is depressing material, because in it readers encounter the brutal injustice and sorrow that was the holocaust. Schindlers List is an Oscar Award winning film that graphically displays the reality of what Jews, during the holocaust, were forced to endure. I am of the opinion that the novel Night and the movie Schindlers List should be part of a school curriculum. A school is a place of learning, not a place of hiding. Reading the novel night produces haunting imagery, some believe haunting imagery should be placed in the furthest recesses of the human mind. The logic being that if you do not think or speak about the holocaust you will not have to feel sad. This type of thinking is natural and most humans act in this manner. Choosing not to teach the holocaust to students means instead that students are being taught to hide reality. Not teaching the holocaust leads indirectly to teaching something harmful to students. Elie Wiesel did not write of his experiences for the sole purpose of shocking people. Elie was aware that shocking people would happen initially, and learning from the holocaust would occur subsequently. It is harmful not to be informed as to the evil that lurks among us as humans. If the holocaust is not taught to students then it will be forgotten. Elie Wiesel wrote Night so that it would cause people to take action towards never letting something like the holocaust happen again.
Oscar Shindler saved more than 1,200 Jews from almost certain death. The Nazi party used propoganda in order to make Jews look like the problems of society. The movie Schindlers List shows how a German citizen was able to save the lives of people he was supposed to despise. Along with the Jews that were saved Schindlers List shows the fate of the Jews that were killed. Watching the scenes of mass murder are by no means pleasant, but they are not intended to be. The horror of the holocaust displayed in Schindlers List was produced not to entirely to disturb but to learn from. Knowing what went on during the holocaust is something one can not and should not forget, Schindlers List causes people to remember. A disaster like the holocaust should be taught in schools because reading and seeing tragedy teaches the reader and viewer alike, about the horror of injustice. Elie Wiesel won a Nobel Prize for his novel Night. Steven Spielbergs movie, Schindlers List, won several Oscars because of its quality. Night and Schindlers List were not created for monetary gain, they were made to enlighten the minds of people as to what could happen if people are unaware.