Essay – The Holocaust

 
Required Resources
Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 5, 6
Lesson
Minimum of 2 scholarly sources (in addition to the textbook)

Instructions
For this assignment, select one of the following options.
Option 1: Poetry
Select any 2 poems about the Holocaust. You can select from the following list of poets/poems or conduct additional research on Holocaust poetry. Make sure to get approval from your instructor if you are selecting something not on the list. Click on the link to see the list:
Link: List of Poets/Poems

Bronislawa Wajs: Tears of Blood
Primo Levi: Buna
Chaim Nachman Bialik: After My Death; On the Slaughter
Martin Niemöller: First They Came for the Jews
Mary Elizabeth Frye: Do not stand at my grave and weep
Carl Sandburg: Grass
Miklós Radnóti: Postcard 1; Postcard 2; Postcard 3; Postcard 4
Bertolt Brecht: The Burning of the Books; Parting; The Mask of Evil
Ber Horvitz: Der Himmel [The Heavens]
Yala Korwin: Passover Night 1942; The Little Boy with His Hands Up
Michael R. Burch: Something
Paul Celan: Death Fugue; O, Little Root of a Dream

Write an analysis of each poem, including the following information:

Explain the background on the author, especially in relation to the Holocaust.
Explain the content of the poem – what story or message is it trying to tell?
How does the poem relate to the bigger picture of the Holocaust?
How effective is the poem in relating the Holocaust to readers?

Option 2: Art
Select any 2 of works of art about the Holocaust. You can select from the following list or conduct additional research on Holocaust art. Make sure to get approval from your instructor if you are selecting something not on the list. Click on the link to see the list:
Link: List of Artists/Artworks

Morris Kestelman: Lama Sabachthani [Why Have You Forsaken Me?]
George Mayer-Marton: Women with Boudlers
Bill Spira: Prisoners Carrying Cement
Jan Hartman: Death March (Czechowice-Bielsko, January 1945)
Edgar Ainsworth: Belsen
Leslie Cole: One of the Death Pits, Belsen. SS Guards Collecting Bodies
Doris Zinkeisen: Human Laundry, Belsen: April 1945
Eric Taylor: A Young Boy from Belsen Concentration Camp
Mary Kessell: Notes from Belsen Camp
Edith Birkin: The Death Cart – Lodz Ghetto
Shmuel Dresner: Benjamin
Roman Halter: Mother with Babies
Leo Breuer: Path Between the Barracks, Gurs Camp
Leo (Lev) Haas: Transport Arrival, Theresienstadt Ghetto
Jacob Lipschitz: Beaten (My Brother Gedalyahu)
Norbert Troller: Terezin
Anselm Kiefer: Sternenfall

Write an analysis of each artwork, including the following information:

Identify the title, artist, date completed, and medium used.
Explain the content of the artwork – what do the images show?
How does the artwork relate to the bigger picture of the Holocaust?
How effective is the artwork in relating the Holocaust to viewers?

Option 3: Video
Watch the following video:

Link (video): The Holocaust (Links to an external site.) (35:00)

Write a paper on what you learned about peoples’ experiences and intentions during the Holocaust:

What were the Nazis thinking of when they made these decisions?
What were the otherwise good people of Germany thinking when they allowed it to go on?
What were the victims of this genocide thinking and feeling as they went through this terrible process?
Describe at least one part of the video that had the greatest impact on you.
How effective are the writings/images in the video in relating the Holocaust to viewers?

Writing Requirements (APA format)

Length: 2-3 pages (not including title page or references page)
1-inch margins
Double spaced
12-point Times New Roman font
Title page
References page