Introduction
Speaking before a group of specialists on the Holocaust in June 1996, Peter Hayes, Professor of History at Northwestern University, emphasized the protean character of the Holocaust. Just as the French Revolution or the origins of the First World War, the Holocaust has also proved to have been a watershed event, which redefined subsequent analyses of the past including history as it evolved before the Holocaust.
However, Hayes also reminded listeners that given the importance of the Holocaust, it is, like the aforementioned groups, equally likely to succumb to fragmentation as it is dealt with in increasing detail and depth through the various academic disciplines. At that time, Hayes, in my opinion, placed too much emphasis on the dangers of fragmentation. Rather, it appears that fragmentation has reinforced a reconsideration of the whole event. Contrary to the splitting off of English literature from English history, the links between comparable Holocaust-related topics is much stronger given the memoire character of most Holocaust literature. Holocaust history is not possible with Holocaust literature - as a means of tying events together in a more meaningful and intimate manner.
Two Terms
The Holocaust has come to signify the destruction and martyrdom of the European Jews under the Nazi occupation during the Second World War. The word "holocaust" in part means "massive destruction by fire." Within the Greek translations of the Bible, i.e., the Septuagint, the term appears over 200 times in a variety of forms. Without exception, the term "holocaust" referred to a sacrifice and in many cases to a sacrifice made to God. From this vantage point, the Jews became a sacrifice to God offered up by Nazis serving a "quasi-'priestly' role." Elie Wiesel's metaphorical use of Isaac and Jacob suggests just such an interpretation. As a critical observer, Zev Garber fears the elevation of the "Holocaust" into a Biblical event transforms it into "a myth rather than a reality." The word "Shoah," in comparison, conveys the meaning of complete destruction without religious overtones. (1)
Preserving the memory ...
It is generally believed that a total of eleven million people were murdered by the Nazi regime, including political opponents, Gypsies, the mentally ill, homosexuals, and other "undesirables." An estimated six million were killed because they were Jews. For the first time in history, an entire people was targeted for annihilation by a government. The Nazi state systematically developed and implemented a plan to destroy all Jews. The destruction of European Jewry stands as the archetype of genocide in human history.
The Holocaust, an important and relevant subject for classroom study, ultimately teaches valuable lessons about human nature and society. It is a compelling story of humanity which demonstrates extreme courage, faith, physical and emotional strength, as well as unspeakable terror, cruelty, and indifference. By examining good and evil in human nature, students can look inward and better understand themselves and their relationships to others.
The lessons learned from studying the Holocaust are universal, applying to other examples of tyranny and injustice. American history contains painful chapters, such as the treatment of the Indians, of slaves, and Japanese-Americans during various periods. Worldwide, the use of poison gas against civilian populations by Iraq, apartheid in South Africa, the Pol Pot regime in Cambodia, and the Armenian genocide are glaring examples of cruelty and suffering. Tragically, these events dot the pages not only of history books but our daily newspaper front pages as well, because people have not learned what destruction the seeds of hate may sow.
For many people around the world, the terror and threat of genocide is not an anachronistic notion perpetrated by barbarians generations ago, but rather is a current reality.
This course of study is designed to raise issues which are of contemporary interest. How could the Holocaust happen? What were its origins, and what forces made it inevitable? What could have stopped it? Who was responsible for it? Was the Holocaust caused by a few insane political leaders, or was it the result of social forces? How powerless were those who were neither the perpetrators nor the victims? What can be done to prevent its reoccurrence? What is the appropriate response to those who assert that this event never occurred at all? Was the Holocaust any less acceptable because it occurred in a technologically advanced Western culture?
Course Objectives
Study the destructive nature of prejudice, focusing on the Holocaust as the extreme outcome of institutionalized prejudice. A progression will be traced from unfavorable attitudes, to denial of civil rights, to incarceration and forced labor in ghettos, prisons, and concentration camps, to mass murder. The implications of a government instituting a policy of genocide against its citizens will be explored.
Study the history of anti-Semitism. Students will learn about Jewish beliefs and customs, and how they were interpreted by non-Jews. Students will have a sense of the Jewish experience in Europe from ancient times through the Holocaust. They will recognize that the Holocaust was not an isolated incident, but evolved out of centuries of prejudice.
Study the political ideology of Nazism. Students will see that the destruction of the Jews was part of the political philosophy of Adolf Hitler. They will study the carefully-planned steps leading to the destruction of European Jewry and the government-controlled methods used to carry it out. The extent of cooperation and the meticulous attention to detail needed to enact Hitler's policy will be explained. The resistance to this policy will be explored. Students will learn that the victims of the Holocaust were the Jews, the mentally ill, the physically disabled, Gypsies, homosexuals, political opponents, and other "undesirables."
Learn about attempts to resist the Nazis, and about individuals who worked to save Jews.
Learn what has happened to the survivors and perpetrators of the Holocaust.
Discuss who was responsible for the Holocaust.
Explore the ethical dilemmas of carrying out orders which are disagreeable, immoral, unethical, or illegal.
Internet Resources
Course Web Page
http://www2.dsu.nodak.edu/users/dmeier/page1.html
Perseus Project
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/
Internet Jewish Sourcebook
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/jewish/jewishsbook.html
Endnotes
1. Zev Garber, Shoah: The Paradigmatic Genocide
(London: University Press of America, 1994), pp. 51-64.