...Smith retold the stories that reflected prejudice, racism and bias in Crown Heights, not to seek who was wrong or right in Crown Heights, but to uncover the deep-seated hatred that occurs in this country. The truth may never be revealed but the audience is able to understand that the reasons for the rage in Crown Heights are more than just the Gavin Cato case of Yankel Rosenbaum’s murder. Anna Deveare Smith’s method of finding the truth in peoples stories lies in their syntax. The stutters and the “um’s” give the audience a better understanding of the character because in those stammers and pauses we, even for a moment, see some truth. Although it may help us understand where people are coming from, we still have no definite answer for why things ended up the way they did in Crown Heights. For example, in the monologue titled, Static, a Jewish woman says, “ I saw a little boy in the neighborhood, who I didn’t know and who didn’t know me—not Jewish, he was black and he wasn’t wearing a yarmulke because you can’t—“. The pauses in this particular monologue tell me that this woman is trying to watch what she says. In the times of hatred between Blacks and the Jewish, she did not want to slip up and so we often see her pausing to collect her thoughts or refer back to her story. This monologue does not necessarily help me reflect the truth about the riots in Crown Heights directly but I can not a clear example of stereotyping. The Blacks and the Jewish constantly have pre-determined...
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...actions may be caused by a sense of religious justification, economic factors, or aspirations for strengthening of an empire. However there can be more reasons than those of a political or religious nature. In many ways personal bias, environmental and psychological factors play heavily into some of the worst atrocities ever envisioned by mankind. This is the case argued in Christopher R. Browning’s book Ordinary Men. Christopher Browning’s book focuses on a key part of World War II that took place behind the scenes of the war, The Holocaust. The Holocaust led to the systematic death of millions of people. These innocent people were only guilty of being labeled as “undesirable” by a supposedly “superior race.” These people consisted of not only Jewish people, who were the majority, but also gypsies, homosexuals, people with mental retardation and physical ailments, Polish people, Slavic people, communists, and Jehovah witnesses. Though the Holocaust is well known today, he primarily focuses on what could cause a group of seemingly ‘ordinary men’ from the Police Battalion 101 to transform into mass murderers. He uses the evidence of the 1960 war trials, thoroughly...
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...Everyday a child dies from hunger. Everyday refugees wander the streets, unable to find a place willing to take them in. Everyday someone suffers at the hand of government plots. Everyday inexplicable, (sad) events take place. And yet, these events continue to take place because we turn a blind eye, or because we refuse to offer help to those who need it. Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel speaks for these people in his speech “The Perils of Indifference”. With his somber, controlled tone, Elie addresses government officials and friends and everyone in between, claiming that indifference to the plights of others is an inhuman act. Through the use of sarcasm, Elie displays the true affects of indifference. He states, “ Of course, indifference can...
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...The Jewish people had waited long enough to resettle in the land of Israel where they were once able to enjoy a national existence. Many believed that by achieving this national existence once again, the Jewish people may be able to avoid any future calamities. It was the harsh living situation of the Jews in the many different host-countries that they inhabited that led to the development of the idea of Zionism. Zionism seeks to establish in Palestine, for such Jews as choose to go and remain there, and for their descendants, a legally secured home, where they may live together and lead a Jewish life, where they may expect ultimately to constitute a majority to the populations, and may look forward to what we should call home rule. The Zionists seek to establish this home in Palestine because they are convinced that the undying longing of Jews for Palestine is a fact of deepest significance; that it is a manifestation in the struggle for existence by an ancient people which has established its right to live, a people whose three thousand years of civilization has produced a faith, culture, and individuality which will enable it to contribute largely in the future, as it has in the past, to the advance of civilization; and hat it is not a right merely but a duty of the Jewish nationality to survive and develop. (Brandeis) Having a national existence by creating their home in Palestine would be extremely beneficial to the Jewish people. A national existence enables such...
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...Change is both a vital and inevitable part of our lives, and has a powerful effect on people, their perspectives, and the world around them. Through their experiences, many characters in texts such as Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, and the film, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, directed by Mark Herman, undergo various changes and transformations, not only physically, emotionally and intellectually, but also in their understanding and perspectives of the world around them. Studying texts such as these provides the audience with valuable insight into the aspects of changing worlds, perspectives, relationships and selves, which they are then able to relate to their own lives. Characters in both To Kill A Mockingbird and The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (hereafter referred to as Mockingbird and Pyjamas respectively) change their attitude to society’s notions of the superiority of certain races and religions over others, creating a valuable moral imperative through the historical nature of the texts. Harper Lee’s Mockingbird is set in the small American town of Maycomb amidst the 1930s civil rights movement, and is centred on Scout’s moral struggle when questioning the racism and discrimination present. At the start of the novel, Scout blindly follows the discriminatory beliefs of society, although as she experiences more of the world for herself, she begins to question the hypocrisy of society, “How can you hate Hitler so bad an’ then turn around and be ugly about folks...
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...Is Key Is the two-state solution a viable path towards peace between Israel and Palestine? No, there is no doubt that the two-state solution will not work. People have been trying to get Israelis and Palestinians to live together with two separate states for decades and where has that gotten us? Absolutely nowhere. The closest that we have gotten to an agreement was when former President Bill Clinton convinced the two states to agree on their borders, but the only flaw was who would Jerusalem belong to. This proves that the only viable option is a one state solution. This conflict has been going on for decades, this tension between Israel and Palestine dates back to the beginning of the Holocaust. The problem then was that there was a Zionist movement at the beginning of the Holocaust where all of the wealthy Jews living in Germany began to flee sp they could avoid the terror of Germany at that time. The place they fled to is now modern day Israel. At first the Palestinians were “okay” with them coming into the country because they thought that they would eventually leave and go back to where they came from. They soon found that to be very wrong. In 1947, everything took a turn for the worst for Palestinians. That year Israel was finally seen by the United Nations as their own independent state. That year was also when Israel had taken half of the country from Palestinians with their continuously growing population. Some of the problems that they were having in the past...
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...the middle class and furthered the dissatisfaction of the German people with the current Government. This presented the NSDAP an opportunity to present a policy that would benefit Germany. The regime offered opportunities to the population with security across the community and a direction of supremacy for their race. Policies of the Nazis did not include involving the broader population in the more brutal and violent parts of their rule, thus the people’s communities were forged through genocide. Hitler was obsessed with having a pure racial community in Germany and an extension of land for Germany eventuating in world domination and he pursued these objectives with ruthlessness and inhuman brutality. Progressive radicalization was inevitable due to the chaotic anti-Semitism beliefs and competitive nature of an elite ruler and a few devout followers. The propaganda campaigns are what paved the way to anti-Semitism becoming a way of life throughout Germany responsible for desensitizing people to human compassion and portrayed the Jewish people as evil sub-species who needed to be eradicated in order to achieve a pure race fit for the Utopian society Adolf Hitler had envisioned and promised. The Beer Hall Putsch of 1923 is an event that continues to resurface in the numerous literatures I came...
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...The Nuremberg Trials by R. D. A student essay from Dr. Elliot Neaman's History 210 class (historical methods - fall 1996) © Elliot Neaman / PHDN Reproduction interdite par quelque moyen que ce soit / no reproduction allowed ________________________________________ The Nuremberg Trials took place during the immediate aftermath of World War II. They were the first trials in history to indict an entire regime for aggressive war crimes. These crimes included invading other nations, violating the Treaty of Versailles and most significantly, "crimes against humanity". These crimes were what later became known as the Holocaust, in which millions of innocent victims were deported, enslaved and systematically executed. The victims were primarily Jewish however many other victims suffered at the hands of the Nazis such as: Poles, Gypsies, the handicapped and the elderly. The Nuremberg Charter "defined war crimes as violations of the laws or customs of war"(Rosenbaum p, 30). Including killing of hostages, ill-treatment of civilians, use of forced labor and looting of public and private property and racial persecution. The International Military Tribunal, the prosecutors consisting of lawyers and judges from the United States, France, England and the Soviet Union had countless evidence of these crimes committed by the Nazis, however to serve justice to every individual for their inhumane actions was impossible. The Nuremberg Trials prosecuted twenty one defendants (all of whom were...
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...The uncertainties, therefore, contribute to the decisions that are taken, thus, ultimately controlling the flow of history itself. This is why using history as a character is so useful in making us grasp the uncertain nature of history and the effect it can have. It shows us that if certain likely events had taken place e.g.: Lindbergh being elected as the president, we would have been living in a completely different world right now. Understanding the uncertain nature of history is important as it teaches us about the fragility of our world and truly makes value the world that we...
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...who died at Auschwitz at the age of thirteen and how, although her life was taken at such a young age, her memory and spirit continue to live on today. Adapted from the book of the same title by Karen Levine, HANA’S SUITCASE explores the journey of teacher and children at the Tokyo Holocaust Education Center take to find out who Hana Brady is—all from a suitcase the Center received with Hana’s name, birth date, and the word waisenkind (orphan) written on it. The children at the Center are captivated by this suitcase, and the girl who once owned it, and they begin flooding Fumiko Ishioka, the Center’s Director, with question after question about Hana. Fumiko recognizes the importance of uncovering Hana’s story for her students. This tragic event cannot be summed up in numbers or facts— it affected individuals, young and old, who each had a story, families, and hopes and dreams. As Fumiko slowly but determinedly reveals Hana’s story, she discovers that Hana was sent to live in Theresienstadt, a Jewish ghetto, and eventually died at Auschwitz. However, as devastating as this is for Fumiko and the children at the Center to find out, they also learn that Hana had an older brother who survived the Holocaust and was now living with his family in Canada. Fumiko and the children write to George Brady, asking him to share...
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...German-Soviet). In the Kremlin Ribbentrop spoke with Stalin and his foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov, where they discussed the proposal of a non-aggression pact. Hitler at first stated the pact would last 100 years though Stalin thought ten would suffice, the agreement also stated that "neither country would aid any third party that attacked either signatory" (1. German-Soviet). It was reported sometime later that Hitler did bribe Stalin with a secret protocol that would allow the Soviet Union to have the eastern half of Poland (Dmitrieva). This non-aggression pact became known as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, which created a two year peace between Germany and the Soviet Union and neutralized the French-Soviet treaty. Now the questions remain, why only two years...
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...Research and Answer: The causes of genocide in many situations in history are a hatred of some kind, or a stereotype. Over the years prejudices are developed for others that seem to be different in some way, whether it be religion, or what you look like. In the case of the Holocaust, it had nothing to do with how people looked, but their religion (Judaism). These differences lead people to believe that they are better than them in every way. People allow genocide to still occur today because no matter what, people will be different. As long as people are different, there is a reason to hate people that aren’t like you. You or I wouldn’t support genocide, but people that believe in their religion or culture strong enough can believe they are superior to everyone else, and have the right to perform a genocide. Yes, I believe that allied air bombings of german cities were ethical because many people may say that no killing is ethical, however you can’t just let Germany kill as many people as they want and not fire back because it isn’t ethical. Germany had to be stopped in some way, and I believe bombing them was most ethical. Other groups that suffered at the hands of the Nazis are All non-Aryans, including Jews, Communists,...
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...admitted into the concentration camps, Guido resorts to lying to Joshua as a coping mechanism for the truth, whereas Shlomo respects the truth as it is. During the beginning, this really sets the stage to see how their relationships grow or slowly weaken due to the bitter acts of the German Army. In the beginning of Night, Elie’s family and the rest of the Jews were forced out of their homes by the germans. Elie writes, “My father had risen before all of us, to seek information in town. He returned around eight o’ clock. Good news: we were not leaving town today; we were only moving to the small ghetto. That is where we were to wait for the last transport. We would be the last to leave” (Wiesel 18). Since Elie knows this information about the holocaust, we can infer that Shlomo has told him everything that he knows about what is going on. Because Elie knows all of this material, he is expecting the worst of the situation and is full of worry on his, and his family’s behalf. This creates an unhealthy relationship between the him and Shlomo because of all the apprehension and uncertainty that this situation that they’re in brings them. In the beginning of Life is Beautiful, Guido and his son Joshua are sent on a train to a concentration camp, but in this case Guido completely disguises the fact that anything unusual or bad is going on. As they are boarding the train, Guido says to Joshua, “Look at this line. I made it just in time to get the last tickets-it was a miracle. Come on, Uncle...
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...The Crucifixion of Jesus Christ The crucifixion of Jesus Christ is a complicated historical event which is discussed from many perspectives including the biblical perspective that includes Christian theology, with Jesus’ death being a necessary event for the atonement of humanity’s sins. A more historical perspective gives attention to the Romans, where we can look at why crucifixion was the chosen means to punish Jesus. Also, a Jewish perspective is also required to complete the picture. There are not many primary sources on this matter as it occurred 2000 years ago, so interpretations of the New Testament, more specifically the gospels, are the sources of information that can be used on this matter. The gospels were also most likely written in the Aramaic language and later translated to Greek, and now translated to English. So there is also a large possibility of misinterpretation through these translations. Because of these limitations, the truth of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ is not entirely clear, though, a picture can be painted using these perspectives mentioned, however unclear. Despite the lack of clarity of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, there are still events we can say that occurred with a fair amount of certainty, even 2000 years ago. Even the existence of Jesus himself is argued by some scholars but we will agree he was a real man for the sake of this article. As for the crucifixion itself, we can also agree on some facts. Firstly, Jesus was crucified...
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...The Cost-Benefit Analysis of Alberta’s Tar Sands Student Name: Nas Abubaker Instructor Name: Brenda Lang Course and Section: GNED 1304-009 Date: March 22, 2011 Abstract Alberta is one of the most ecologically rich provinces in Canada, with boreal forests covering most of the northern and eastern parts of the province. The exploration of the Alberta tar sands has a great impact on the environment and the community. The devastation effects can destroy ancient forests, while contaminating food and water, which disrupts local wildlife, leading to greenhouse gas emissions, as well as serious health problems. As the production of oil through tar sands creates intensive challenges, immediate strategies that control the amount of devastation are greatly needed. The Cost-Benefit Analysis of Alberta’s Tar Sands As the world is racing to discover new ways to find replacements for the rapidly diminishing stores of fossil fuels, many have gone into the avenue of looking for the solution via the route of renewable energy. However, the discovery of Canada's greatest buried treasure in Alberta has drawn attention from a multitude of countries around the world, all of them eager to sign contracts with Canadian petroleum suppliers. In a report released by the government in the late 1800's, a report dealing with the region's tar sands called them as the “most extensive petroleum field in America, and even went to the extent that the fields will...
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