This Blog is a resource tool for the students taking the "FACING HISTORY AND OURSELVES" elective at Westborough High School, Westborough, Massachusetts.
Monday, March 25, 2013
PERIOD 6 - THE INTERVIEW
You have been watching the BBC documentary, The Rise of the Nazis - A Warning from History. Please share your thoughts about the segment on the Gestapo that you saw today. What did you think of the interview with Resi Kraus?
43 comments:
Julia Arsenault
said...
I think that Kraus was struggling with the two people she has been in her life. During the Holocaust, there was a lot of pressure to turn in Jewish people. She was complying with the rules of that time. Now that we don't have those same beliefs and it is horrible to discriminate by religion, she acts in that manner. She was changing with the times but doesn't want to admit in todays times to the person she was. I believe she wrote that letter but she doesn't want to believe she wrote it because that would make her a bad person. Her one letter killed an innocent woman and she doesn't want to rememeber the power she had in those times and wants to forget how she used that power to harm others.
I thought it was frustrating listening to Resi Kraus talk about what she did to her neighbor. Her actions caused the neighbor to be sent to a concentration camp and then essentially killed. At the time, Resi thought that telling on her neighbor would be the right thing to do but when she looks back on it, she seems ashamed and not willing to tell the full story of what happened. I hope she realizes that what she did was wrong and she should feel very guilty.
I agree with Julia on that Resi thought she had a lot of power over people like her neighbor. It's unfortunate that she used that power for bad uses instead of helping people with it.
I agree with Avalon that Kraus was ashamed of what she had done because she was never in the group of people harming others. She says she didn't join the Gestapo youth for girls or do anything but is now realizing how just her own letter was just as bad as what the others did.
i agree with Julia that Kraus struggled in her life and the people she was with. i think that when the holocaust happened the people had to follow Hitler and if they didnt they would get killed.
I found it surprising that Resi Kraus said that it was her signature on the letter, but yet refused to admit that she wrote it. When she wrote the letter, it wasn't a big deal for her because many people were turning in Jewish people at that time. Now she is realizing that by writing the letter, she was basically sending her neighbor off to be killed. I think she's ashamed to admit that she wrote the letter because times have changed, and she realizes now how wrong it was to write it.
I agree with Avalon that it was frustrating to listen to Resi Kraus because she refused to admit that she did such a horrible thing by turning in her neighbor.
I believe that Resi was unwilling to admit what she had done because at that time she was a completely different person than she is now and is ashamed of her who the Nazi's turned her into.
I agree with most of what Avalon had to say but I don't think she should feel a serious sense of guilt. I by no means am supporting what she had done but she was one of thousands of people to do this, which shows the complete control and power the Nazi party had over the people and they were all essentially brainwashed into believing what Hitler was doing was for the best.
I agree with most of what Avalon had to say but I don't think she should feel a serious sense of guilt. I by no means am supporting what she had done but she was one of thousands of people to do this, which shows the complete control and power the Nazi party had over the people and they were all essentially brainwashed into believing what Hitler was doing was for the best.
I thought it was shocking that the old woman would do such a thing. It was interesting to see her deny her actions even after there was so much evidence put forth as to validate that she did in fact report her neighbor.
When Kraus said that she didn't sign that document, I truly believed that she had convinced herself that it wasn't her. Though it may have been her physically, she sees that the young woman at the time that the documented was signed was a completely different person. The open denial that we all saw was Kraus's way of dealing with the shame and possibly guilt for signing a document that ended an innocent life. I think WW2 and Hitler's rule is often an isolated era in people's lives because the living situations and survival tactics where just so different than they are in a function society.
I absolutely agree with what everyone has been saying about it being frustrating that Kraus would not admit to her action that led to the innocent murder of her neighbor. But looking at it from a different perspective. Its seems a though her denial represented a certain amount of shame or embarrassment, many of the other people that were interviewed didn't think anything of their actions that encouraged Nazi power. At least this woman is tripped up by it.
i agree with Julia that Kraus struggled in her life and the people she was with. i think that when the holocaust happened the people had to follow Hitler and if they didnt they would get killed.
i agree with Julia. Resi was two different people. She was a Nazi supporter then because she wasnt jewish and was happy to be on the protected "side". Now she knows how wrong it was to do but doesnt want to remember it.
I think that Resi Kraus' opinion towards Jewish people and their beliefs changed with how her society saw them. Back when she was younger during Hitler's reign Resi sided with non jewish people to fit in with the majority and also to stay safe. However now that society looks down upon Hitler, his Nazi party, and their beliefs, Resi denies thinking how she did. She knows that what her people did was wrong now that she is seeing a different side of the story.
I agree with Julia's comment when she said that Resi was changing with the times. Resi didn't want to admit her past decision that caused the death of an innocent woman.
I thought that it was surprising when Resi Kraus did such a thing to her neighbor. I think that she felt like she had to turn in her neighbor during the Holocaust. I also think that everyone wanted to follow the rules at that time. She's not able to admit that she did sign the paper because she's in denial of what she has done.
I thought that she was just one example of the many Germanic people who during that time participated in the Holocaust. They didn't really think much of what they did back then because everyone else was doing it. But now that those actions have been determined as unacceptable (as they should be), they want to forget it ever happened instead of taking responsibility. Each person didn't realize how important their own individual actions were. Resi's one letter sent a woman to her death, and yet she can't seem to recall ever doing it, as if it isn't important. Everyone's actions were important, because if they all wrote "just one letter", it affects many people.
I agree with Sami about how Resi wanted to follow along with what "the group" was doing at the time. It was easier to go along with the group than to defend the "others" and risk becoming one.
I thought the interview was very interesting. Krauss admitted that her signature was on the letter given to the Gestapo but wouldn't admit that she herself had signed the letter. I took this to think that she either felt bad about what she had done in previous years and was a different person now or that she still felt what she had done was right but didn't want to admit it because of what others might think of her today. I agree with what Julia said about Krauss being two different people. I also thought it was amazing how the Nazi party went from so little power to such a great amount of power in so little time. The fact the Hitler was so unorganized yet still ran a very powerful government was also surprising.
I think that Kraus naturally agrees with the opinions of society based on the time period. During the holocaust she was being told to turn against the Jewish community by her leaders which had practically brainwashed her to believe their ideas. She only wrote the letter because it was the way she was thinking at the time but will not admit it now as the views she expressed in the letter are not longer acceptable.
I agree with Meghan that Kraus based her beliefs off what society agreed with. It is natural for all humans to want to "fit in" and the way Kraus could fit in was to turn against the Jews.
I think that Kraus was so caught up in Nazism and its propaganda that she did not realize what she was doing. What she had done was awful and had sent her neighbor to her death, but she was so caught up in the movement, she didn't even realize what she had done and couldn't recall having done it later.
I agree with Avalon. It was frustrating to see Kraus deny the letter after incriminating evidence was put forth showing she had sent someone to her death. Even if this was the intention of the letter, she should still fell terrible for her actions.
I think that the interview with Kraus shows how much power one person has, that since Kraus denounced her neighbor, her neighbor ended up getting sent to a concentration camp. I think that the interview also shows how people looking back have a hard time accepting what they did; Kraus did not want to accept that she actually wrote that letter and that she was actually the reason why her neighbor died.
I agree with Johanna that it was interesting how the Nazi party was able to generate so much support and power in such a short amount of time even though many people have said that Hitler was not an organized person.
I believe that Kraus knew what she did was wrong and that she did not want to admit it. I thought it was kind of funny how she said she did not sign the papers yet her signature was on the sheet.
I think it was interesting to see how Kraus switched her view on what she did in the past to make herself think she actually didn't turn in her neighbor. It shows how during times like these, people can be brainwashed to do horrible things to innocent people.
I agree with Juila in that the times make Kraus not want to admit the wrongs she has done in her past. I think this shows how severely messed up people became living under the stresses and pressures of Nazi regime.
I found it interesting that she claimed that she didn't write the letter, even though she agreed it was evidently her signature on the document. What she possibly did was really awful, and this demonstrates the shocking and severe situation on hand at the time.
The interview with Resi Kraus was strange to watch as she denied her involvement in the persecution of a jew and her neighbor when there was clear evidence that she had infact done it. She denied it in order to keep her image to the people that know her and so that she would not be incriminated for something that is now considered a very bad offense to not only the jews but the entire country of Germany.
I agree with what several other people said about how it was funny that her signature was on the letter and she denied writing it. Of course, there's a chance that she didn't write the letter and the signature was forged or something like that, but it's pretty much impossible that she didn't write the letter otherwise.
I think what Kraus had to say was both frustrating and sad. I think it was horrible and unfair of her to ruin an innocent person's life, and not admit to it. However, I still have some sympathy for the fact that she realized how horrible what she did was and her regret for the situation and her shame in the Nazis made up for it at least a little bit.
I agree that Kraus should feel guilt, however I think it's already apparent that she does. If she was not guilty or ashamed, she would not defend herself against the crime so stubbornly.
43 comments:
I think that Kraus was struggling with the two people she has been in her life. During the Holocaust, there was a lot of pressure to turn in Jewish people. She was complying with the rules of that time. Now that we don't have those same beliefs and it is horrible to discriminate by religion, she acts in that manner. She was changing with the times but doesn't want to admit in todays times to the person she was. I believe she wrote that letter but she doesn't want to believe she wrote it because that would make her a bad person. Her one letter killed an innocent woman and she doesn't want to rememeber the power she had in those times and wants to forget how she used that power to harm others.
I was absent that day.
I was absent on that day.
I thought it was frustrating listening to Resi Kraus talk about what she did to her neighbor. Her actions caused the neighbor to be sent to a concentration camp and then essentially killed. At the time, Resi thought that telling on her neighbor would be the right thing to do but when she looks back on it, she seems ashamed and not willing to tell the full story of what happened. I hope she realizes that what she did was wrong and she should feel very guilty.
I agree with Julia on that Resi thought she had a lot of power over people like her neighbor. It's unfortunate that she used that power for bad uses instead of helping people with it.
I agree with Avalon that Kraus was ashamed of what she had done because she was never in the group of people harming others. She says she didn't join the Gestapo youth for girls or do anything but is now realizing how just her own letter was just as bad as what the others did.
james yi
i agree with Julia that Kraus struggled in her life and the people she was with. i think that when the holocaust happened the people had to follow Hitler and if they didnt they would get killed.
I found it surprising that Resi Kraus said that it was her signature on the letter, but yet refused to admit that she wrote it. When she wrote the letter, it wasn't a big deal for her because many people were turning in Jewish people at that time. Now she is realizing that by writing the letter, she was basically sending her neighbor off to be killed. I think she's ashamed to admit that she wrote the letter because times have changed, and she realizes now how wrong it was to write it.
I agree with Avalon that it was frustrating to listen to Resi Kraus because she refused to admit that she did such a horrible thing by turning in her neighbor.
I believe that Resi was unwilling to admit what she had done because at that time she was a completely different person than she is now and is ashamed of her who the Nazi's turned her into.
I agree with most of what Avalon had to say but I don't think she should feel a serious sense of guilt. I by no means am supporting what she had done but she was one of thousands of people to do this, which shows the complete control and power the Nazi party had over the people and they were all essentially brainwashed into believing what Hitler was doing was for the best.
I agree with most of what Avalon had to say but I don't think she should feel a serious sense of guilt. I by no means am supporting what she had done but she was one of thousands of people to do this, which shows the complete control and power the Nazi party had over the people and they were all essentially brainwashed into believing what Hitler was doing was for the best.
I thought it was shocking that the old woman would do such a thing. It was interesting to see her deny her actions even after there was so much evidence put forth as to validate that she did in fact report her neighbor.
I agree with Patrick that she denied that she had turned in her neighbor because she realized what she did was so horrific.
When Kraus said that she didn't sign that document, I truly believed that she had convinced herself that it wasn't her. Though it may have been her physically, she sees that the young woman at the time that the documented was signed was a completely different person. The open denial that we all saw was Kraus's way of dealing with the shame and possibly guilt for signing a document that ended an innocent life. I think WW2 and Hitler's rule is often an isolated era in people's lives because the living situations and survival tactics where just so different than they are in a function society.
I absolutely agree with what everyone has been saying about it being frustrating that Kraus would not admit to her action that led to the innocent murder of her neighbor. But looking at it from a different perspective. Its seems a though her denial represented a certain amount of shame or embarrassment, many of the other people that were interviewed didn't think anything of their actions that encouraged Nazi power. At least this woman is tripped up by it.
i agree with Julia that Kraus struggled in her life and the people she was with. i think that when the holocaust happened the people had to follow Hitler and if they didnt they would get killed.
i agree with Julia. Resi was two different people. She was a Nazi supporter then because she wasnt jewish and was happy to be on the protected "side". Now she knows how wrong it was to do but doesnt want to remember it.
I think that Resi Kraus' opinion towards Jewish people and their beliefs changed with how her society saw them. Back when she was younger during Hitler's reign Resi sided with non jewish people to fit in with the majority and also to stay safe. However now that society looks down upon Hitler, his Nazi party, and their beliefs, Resi denies thinking how she did. She knows that what her people did was wrong now that she is seeing a different side of the story.
I agree with Julia's comment when she said that Resi was changing with the times. Resi didn't want to admit her past decision that caused the death of an innocent woman.
I thought that it was surprising when Resi Kraus did such a thing to her neighbor. I think that she felt like she had to turn in her neighbor during the Holocaust. I also think that everyone wanted to follow the rules at that time. She's not able to admit that she did sign the paper because she's in denial of what she has done.
I agree with Stephanie's comment on how Kraus's denial seems to represent shame or embarrassment.
I thought that she was just one example of the many Germanic people who during that time participated in the Holocaust. They didn't really think much of what they did back then because everyone else was doing it. But now that those actions have been determined as unacceptable (as they should be), they want to forget it ever happened instead of taking responsibility. Each person didn't realize how important their own individual actions were. Resi's one letter sent a woman to her death, and yet she can't seem to recall ever doing it, as if it isn't important. Everyone's actions were important, because if they all wrote "just one letter", it affects many people.
I agree with Sami about how Resi wanted to follow along with what "the group" was doing at the time. It was easier to go along with the group than to defend the "others" and risk becoming one.
I thought the interview was very interesting. Krauss admitted that her signature was on the letter given to the Gestapo but wouldn't admit that she herself had signed the letter. I took this to think that she either felt bad about what she had done in previous years and was a different person now or that she still felt what she had done was right but didn't want to admit it because of what others might think of her today. I agree with what Julia said about Krauss being two different people. I also thought it was amazing how the Nazi party went from so little power to such a great amount of power in so little time. The fact the Hitler was so unorganized yet still ran a very powerful government was also surprising.
I think that Kraus naturally agrees with the opinions of society based on the time period. During the holocaust she was being told to turn against the Jewish community by her leaders which had practically brainwashed her to believe their ideas. She only wrote the letter because it was the way she was thinking at the time but will not admit it now as the views she expressed in the letter are not longer acceptable.
I agree with Meghan that Kraus based her beliefs off what society agreed with. It is natural for all humans to want to "fit in" and the way Kraus could fit in was to turn against the Jews.
I think that Kraus was so caught up in Nazism and its propaganda that she did not realize what she was doing. What she had done was awful and had sent her neighbor to her death, but she was so caught up in the movement, she didn't even realize what she had done and couldn't recall having done it later.
I agree with Avalon. It was frustrating to see Kraus deny the letter after incriminating evidence was put forth showing she had sent someone to her death. Even if this was the intention of the letter, she should still fell terrible for her actions.
I think that the interview with Kraus shows how much power one person has, that since Kraus denounced her neighbor, her neighbor ended up getting sent to a concentration camp. I think that the interview also shows how people looking back have a hard time accepting what they did; Kraus did not want to accept that she actually wrote that letter and that she was actually the reason why her neighbor died.
I agree with Johanna that it was interesting how the Nazi party was able to generate so much support and power in such a short amount of time even though many people have said that Hitler was not an organized person.
I believe that Kraus knew what she did was wrong and that she did not want to admit it. I thought it was kind of funny how she said she did not sign the papers yet her signature was on the sheet.
I agree with Avalon because I do believe that Kraus now realizes that what she did was wrong but is too shamed to admit it.
I agree with Avalon because I do believe that Kraus now realizes that what she did was wrong but is too shamed to admit it.
I think it was interesting to see how Kraus switched her view on what she did in the past to make herself think she actually didn't turn in her neighbor. It shows how during times like these, people can be brainwashed to do horrible things to innocent people.
I agree with Juila in that the times make Kraus not want to admit the wrongs she has done in her past. I think this shows how severely messed up people became living under the stresses and pressures of Nazi regime.
I found it interesting that she claimed that she didn't write the letter, even though she agreed it was evidently her signature on the document. What she possibly did was really awful, and this demonstrates the shocking and severe situation on hand at the time.
I agree with Julia and Kylie in saying that maybe she just wasn't admitting to what she did because she was ashamed, looking back on it.
I think that she either honestly did not remember what she did or she regretted doing what she did so much that she did not want to talk about it.
The interview with Resi Kraus was strange to watch as she denied her involvement in the persecution of a jew and her neighbor when there was clear evidence that she had infact done it. She denied it in order to keep her image to the people that know her and so that she would not be incriminated for something that is now considered a very bad offense to not only the jews but the entire country of Germany.
I agree with what several other people said about how it was funny that her signature was on the letter and she denied writing it.
Of course, there's a chance that she didn't write the letter and the signature was forged or something like that, but it's pretty much impossible that she didn't write the letter otherwise.
I think what Kraus had to say was both frustrating and sad. I think it was horrible and unfair of her to ruin an innocent person's life, and not admit to it. However, I still have some sympathy for the fact that she realized how horrible what she did was and her regret for the situation and her shame in the Nazis made up for it at least a little bit.
I agree that Kraus should feel guilt, however I think it's already apparent that she does. If she was not guilty or ashamed, she would not defend herself against the crime so stubbornly.
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