Complacency is Cooperation
Throughout the late 1930s and early 1940s, the citizens of Europe looked on as millions of Jewish people were killed, segregated, and discriminated against. The world may never know the exact reasons people did not intervene, but conclusions can be drawn from the information available. This issue is addressed in Elie Wiesel’s memoir, Night, on numerous occasions. Despite some people believing that no one interfered because the people of Europe were afraid, Weisel demonstrates that there were other justifications given by the communities living directly outside some of the worst concentration camps. To begin, there must be a basic understanding of the situation. Adolf Hitler, when coming into power, claimed he would …show more content…
On page 59, the Jewish people in the town are talking about the incoming German soldiers. Many of the Jewish people believed the Germans to all be evil and on this page it mentions, “The optimists were jubilant: ‘Well? What did we tell you? You wouldn’t believe us. There they are, your Germans. What do you say now? Where is their famous cruelty?’” These optimists believed that because the German soldiers peacefully “invading” their town showed human decency, that they were safe and meant no harm. The contrast between this point of view and the inevitable downfall of this peaceful German image--due to the beginnings of the mass extermination of the Jewish people--created distrust between the two sides. One reason this image and distrust was supported by many German people and the villages surrounding concentration camps was the widespread use of propaganda. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum website has an extensive article regarding Nazi propaganda, wherein they describe the sheer amount of propaganda that was distributed and supported. Films, newspapers, caricatures, political cartoons, and books were major contributors to anti-semitic behavior. Though after the war Germans may have claimed that they did not support the Nazi party, propaganda has a major psychological effect they may have not even been aware of, causing their ignorance …show more content…
A page on the The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum website states, “...fear for the consequences—if not physical harm than sanctions of some other kind—rose to the fore in various situations and at certain times—say, in the early months of Nazi rule characterized by terror to eliminate political opposition and during the war and occupation, especially in eastern Europe directly ruled by the Germans.” Though the audience does not read of a particular case of this happening, throughout the novel they read of Jewish people fearing the Germans controlling them. Since the concentration camps were widely known to be awful places, it can be assumed that people besides the ones imprisoned knew what was happening inside those walls. The audience can thus assume that though the surrounding villages can be nowhere near as afraid of the Nazis as the Jewish people are, the fear still remains
Throughout the late 1930s and early 1940s, the citizens of Europe looked on as millions of Jewish people were killed, segregated, and discriminated against. The world may never know the exact reasons people did not intervene, but conclusions can be drawn from the information available. This issue is addressed in Elie Wiesel’s memoir, Night, on numerous occasions. Despite some people believing that no one interfered because the people of Europe were afraid, Weisel demonstrates that there were other justifications given by the communities living directly outside some of the worst concentration camps. To begin, there must be a basic understanding of the situation. Adolf Hitler, when coming into power, claimed he would …show more content…
On page 59, the Jewish people in the town are talking about the incoming German soldiers. Many of the Jewish people believed the Germans to all be evil and on this page it mentions, “The optimists were jubilant: ‘Well? What did we tell you? You wouldn’t believe us. There they are, your Germans. What do you say now? Where is their famous cruelty?’” These optimists believed that because the German soldiers peacefully “invading” their town showed human decency, that they were safe and meant no harm. The contrast between this point of view and the inevitable downfall of this peaceful German image--due to the beginnings of the mass extermination of the Jewish people--created distrust between the two sides. One reason this image and distrust was supported by many German people and the villages surrounding concentration camps was the widespread use of propaganda. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum website has an extensive article regarding Nazi propaganda, wherein they describe the sheer amount of propaganda that was distributed and supported. Films, newspapers, caricatures, political cartoons, and books were major contributors to anti-semitic behavior. Though after the war Germans may have claimed that they did not support the Nazi party, propaganda has a major psychological effect they may have not even been aware of, causing their ignorance …show more content…
A page on the The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum website states, “...fear for the consequences—if not physical harm than sanctions of some other kind—rose to the fore in various situations and at certain times—say, in the early months of Nazi rule characterized by terror to eliminate political opposition and during the war and occupation, especially in eastern Europe directly ruled by the Germans.” Though the audience does not read of a particular case of this happening, throughout the novel they read of Jewish people fearing the Germans controlling them. Since the concentration camps were widely known to be awful places, it can be assumed that people besides the ones imprisoned knew what was happening inside those walls. The audience can thus assume that though the surrounding villages can be nowhere near as afraid of the Nazis as the Jewish people are, the fear still remains