Reference no: EM133818515

Homework: History

The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the planned extermination and genocide of European Jews by the Nazi Party that took place all over Europe from roughly 1941 to 1945 and claimed the lives of six million Jews. While the "Final Solution" was not implemented until 1941, Nazi violence against Jews began much earlier. Shortly after Hitler's rise to power in Germany in 1933, anti-Semitic laws that barred Jews from a number of professions were passed. In 1935, the "Nuremberg Laws" stripped all German Jews of their right to citizenship and prohibited marriage and/or sexual relations between Jews and anyone of "German or German-related blood."

While Hitler's anti-Semitic worldview was unique in many regards, it was also supported by a history of antisemitism in Europe which dates back to the beginnings of Christianity. Consequently, while the circumstances that led to the Holocaust were specific to the time period, it is important to keep in mind that many of the anti-Semitic claims coming out of Nazi Germany had existed for centuries and were being manipulated to fulfill specific political, cultural, and social goals. In turn, this homework is intended to help you better understand the factors that contributed to the Holocaust, the Holocaust as a historical event, and its historical impact. Please follow the instructions below to complete the homework.

Instructions:

I. Watch the 13 minute video created by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. This video will provide you with a brief history of both religious and racial antisemitism from the birth of Christianity to the end of World War II. Pay special attention to the anti-Semitic claims that have been created and transformed throughout history that are discussed throughout the video as they will be relevant throughout the rest of the homework.

II. Read Joseph Goebbels' interpretation of World War II (The document entitled "Propaganda Actions," 4 pages). This source comes from Marvin Perry and Frederick Schweitzer's Antisemitic Myths: A Historical Contemporary Anthology. Note that the commentary before "The Jews Are to Blame" is the editor's commentary and is NOT the primary source. As you read, pay attention to Goebbels' claims about the relationship between Jews and the start of World War II.

III. Read the document entitled "Shoah Accounts Actions." This document includes personal accounts from Chaim Kaplan, a victim of the Holocaust; Hermann Graebe, a German engineer who joined the Nazi Party in 1931 but later left and rescued a number of Jews; Y. Pfeffer, a survivor of the Holocaust; and excerpts from memoirs of Holocaust survivors. This will provide you with an understanding of the "Final Solution" and its impact on Jews throughout Europe. These sources also come from Marvin Perry and Frederick Schweitzer's Antisemitic Myths. Please note again that "The Holocaust" and the commentary before each person's account is the editor's commentary and is NOT the primary source.

IV. After watching the video and reading both of the documents, you are ready to answer the questions below. It is pertinent that you have watched and read all of the material as a few of the questions will ask you to relate the information found in one source to that found in another. You should also have read the Module 5 materials that cover the Second World War as understanding the United States' involvement in the world will also be required to answer some questions.

Answer ALL of the following questions in an 500 to 750 words essay, a minimum of at least 5 paragraphs, which are comprised of roughly 5-7 sentences each. Incorporate evidence from the video and the documents to support your answer and CITE your sources using Turabian Author-Date Style.. Be specific! Short and vague answers will result in lost points. Your homework will be graded not only on the fact that you watched the video and read the sources, but also by your ability to incorporate the evidence within your responses, and citing your sources.

A. What is anti-Semitism? Briefly explain how it has transformed over time and been employed to ostracize Jews, primarily throughout Europe.

B. How did Goebbels interpret the start of World War II? What role did Jews play in Goebbels' image? How does Goebbels' interpretation of the Second World War, which was the conspiracy espoused and endorsed by numerous top Nazi officials, differ from that of the United States and their reasoning behind participation?

C. Explain how the anti-Semitic claims discussed in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum's video are presented in Goebbels' "The Jews Are to Blame." More specifically, what anti-Semitic conspiracies are present in Goebbels' work and how does he employ them to serve his own view of historical events?

D. Discuss the importance of personal accounts left behind by victims, survivors, and perpetrators of the Holocaust. Consider how the anti-Semitic ideas expressed by individuals like Goebbels fueled the Holocaust and how the genocidal violence and degradation impacted those subject to such brutality. Think carefully also about what these accounts tell us about the Holocaust and how such events should be remembered.

E. When considered collectively, why are these sources historically significant? Why is studying the Holocaust in an American-centered history class important?