You've just watched, "The Road to Treblinka" from the documentary, NAZIS: A WARNING FROM HISTORY. It is said, “The reality of the history of the Nazis is far harder to explain than the popular conception of a nation led astray by Hitler. That the Nazi philosophy of obedience, seizure and struggle had appeal in the thirties and can still appeal to millions today.” Do you agree with that statement? In addition - please answer the question, "What did you learn that you did not know before watching the film?"
41 comments:
I didn't know that there were extermination camps where they would kill people right after they got off the trains. I thought there were only work camps where they put people to work. It was really disturbing how they told them that they were just there to take a shower and then put them in the gas chambers. It was also very disturbing how when people went to see the doctor there, they just shot them.
I agree that although it may be hard to believe, there are still people out there that believe in extermination and discrimination of groups. I think that the object of power is very appealling to millions of people and millions of others would follow someone with that power. By forcing others to be obedient and by taking away their livlihoods, many feel important. People strive for that sense of purpose in life and some may find it by controlling others. from the film I learned how many other powerful people were behind Hitler. I realized that it was more that just one man with a vision, but rather about 8 men all sharing the same vision and working towards that common goal. I also didn't know how unexpected some of the deaths were such as thinking they were showering or goin to a doctor.
What I found most interesting about the documentary was the interviews from the people who were there during the time. The man they interviewed who was part of the police seemed to have no remorse for killing innocent people. When he was asked about how he rationalized killing innocent children he said that it was just curious to him to shot someone watch them fall and that was it. It disgusted me how simple he thought it was and how he was not upset at all about it. I also didn't know that they tried to keep the death camps a secret.
Like Rachel I was under the impression that there were working camps where people were also killed, I was unaware that they had just death camps.
I agree with that statement..I don't think you can isolate the Nazi movement and say it's shocking and doesn't fit in with what normal human beings would do. People like to put other people down because it makes them feel superior, and they like to be a part of a group and feel safe. It's not surprising that people in the 1930's would want that, or even in the 21st century. Something I saw during the film that I've been noticing throughout most films in this class is how German ex-Nazis behave in interviews..I thought they acted defensive/angry when asked certain questions like why they went along with the Nazi party, because they either couldn't explain it, or maybe they were afraid to admit that they had caved in to the natural human selfish desire to be a part of that group and put down the "others".
I agree with Julia, I was surprised to see how many other powerful figures who were behind the scenes in the Nazi party. I think we use Hitler as the symbol of the Holocaust and sort of disregard the others, when really there are a lot more factors in play.
I agree with the statement, many people are power crazy and will do anything to get to the top. Also at the time Germany was one of the most educated countries, through propraganda and a brainwashing system that started when people were young, the Nazi's were able to generate so much power and I believe that a mindset like this still exists today. One thing that I found interesting from the film was that at one of the death camps, it was constructed to look exactly like a train station so that the jews had no idea that they were about to die. It just showed how much planning went into it.
I agree with Catherine that it was horrible seeing how many of these people being interviewed who were a part of the Nazi party had no remorse for having killed innocent people. I was also shocked that the gassing method was developed in order to be more humane to the executors.
I do agree with the statement due to the fact that Hilter would have had a very difficult time gaining power and carrying out his plans without the support of the many Nazi followers of the time. Many followed for fear of persecution themselves and because many views at the time didn't see the wrong in what was occuring around them. From this video, I learned a lot more specifically about the death camps. I hadn't been aware that there were six camps in the East and their approximate locations in relation to Germany and the rest of Europe. It made it more realistic to hear from the people that lived during this period. I found it particularly interesting how the man who had been apart of the police that killed many innocent Jews, men, women, and children, was unable to explain why he did it or give an understanding into how he is able to live without guilt for his actions in present day.
I think it was important that Jordan mentioned the detailed, planned structure of the camps to look like normal train stations. It shows how well thought out the Nazi plans for exterminating the Jews were. It made the Nazi effective in their extermination, and easier for the Nazi officers to go through with what they were doing, setted in a comfortable, public area like a quaint train station.
I agree with the statement. Obedience still exists in our world today. People are willing to follow the rules in order to please the other person. It makes the other person have more power by following their rules. What i learned from the film was that Hitler wanted the operation to be kept a secret. I also learned that the interview with the man made him uncomfortable for talking about what he did to the Jews.
I believe that the Nazi philosophy of obedience, seizure and struggle could still have appeal today because when it is known that someone has power, people feel pressured to do what they say. While watching the film, I did not know how the concentration camps came about. I thought it was awful that Hitler tried to keep them a secret let alone set the camps up. I can't believe that they would tell people they're going into showers when they were actually walking to their deaths.
I agree with Jordan on how interesting it was that the Nazis set up the camps in a way so that they would look normal. It's scary to think of how much thought and effort the Nazis put into the structure of these camps just so they could get the outcome from them that they wanted.
I agree with Sam's statement. The German ex-Nazis behaviors in the interviews act defense/angry when asked about why they did what they did to the Jews.
I agree with Julia that there may be some people out there who believe in extermination or discrimination of groups. But I also think that nowadays many people would be willing to stand up for other groups because we have been exposed to events such as the holocaust. I didn't know there was a proposal to move Jews to Madagascar at one point. I was also not aware of the gas experiments. I have hear of a few different medical experiments performed on the Jews that were very inhumane. What really surprised me was that at one camp they slaughtered 1,279 Jews in one day.
I do believe unfortunately that there are still people out there that believe in the the discrimination and extermination that the Nazi's performed on Jews. I found the interviews of some of the people during that time very interesting. especially that of the man who said that he supported the Nazi's. This was crazy to see that he still felt this way even after the events and how people see them today. I also learned how the Nazi's tricked Jews into their death by convincing them they were going to get showers or food and water.
I agree with Jordan's comment about the death camps looking like train stations. This factor as well as the fact that Nazi's told the Jews that they were running to not food water and showers, but their deaths made the camps seem much better than they really were. This prevented some fear and chaos from the Jews because their deaths were unexpected.
I agree that obedience is still out there today. Many people are willing to fight strongly for causes they believe in and are even still blinded in what they are doing because of how strongly obedient they are. What I learned from this film is that the majority of people exterminating the Jews in captured territories were volunteers killing friends and neighbors with little to no regrets.
I agree with Sam. The nazi party members and other people involved with the murdering of Jews tend to get very defensive of what they have done and try to cover it up for one reason or another.
I think the idea of obedience can still be applied today. If people are scared of their government then they would do it to prevent anything bad happening to them and would to anything to make their leader happy. For example in one documentary I saw on North Korea people were praising their dictator and were willing to do anything to please and make him happy.
I do agree with Julia because it could still happen. If the conditions are right people would be willing to do anything to get life on the right path and that's what did happen in Germany when they elected Hitler and that could happen again.
I agree with this statement because I think that civilizations are always able to be indoctrinated. What I learned from this film is that civilian Pols would volunteer for the extermination teams in order to kill Jews.
I agree with Ani, North Korea is a good example of how some people will still do whatever their government says in order to protect themselves.
I didnt know that they had different killing methods for different people. Like when someone claimed to be sick they were shot in the back of the head instead of sent to a gas chamber, neither a good alternative though. It is shocking to see that as soon as they arrive they are sent to their death.
I agree with Rachel, i didnt know that there were two different types of camps. The work camp versus the death camp, both leading to death eventually.
james yi
i agree with julia that there is still people out in the world that believe in exterminationj and discrimination of groups. i dont think that this is right
I agree with Rachel. its very disturbing to know that the Jews literally had no idea what they were walking into.
I thought it was interesting to hear from the guy that was the one who shot the Jews. And I honestly think he was confused because of what he was told.
I believethat if such a party were to arise again today, if it was not stopped in its early stages could potentially lead to another holocaust. There is a lot of ignorance in the world today. I didn't know that they went to such lengths to disguise the train station as normal.
I agree with max. The idea that your own neighbors would br shooting and gassing you the next day is frightening
I was only in class for 10 minutes.
I was only in class for 10 minutes.
I was absent this day.
I was absent this day.
I agree that this statement can still be true today. People often lose sight of their morals because of their desire to impress. IN many cases, gaining approval becomes more impoartant than being a good person. I did not know the Nazis tried to hide evidence of their killing camps after using them,
I agree that it was very interesting to hear from a survivor of Triblinka. It made the horrors of the camp more real.
I found that when they interviewed people from that time period it was very interesting, espescially the man who refused to keep answering questions. The man was unable to vocalize any rational waay to justify what he had done. I learned that they had tricked many of the people into thinking they weere going to get showers but instead were being killed. I agree with Catherine in that I was unaware that the camps were keep aa secret.
It was creepy how they interviewed one of the people whose job was to execute people. It's pretty intesting how the guy reacted to being asked the question though, it seemed like he was trying to say that he'd already learned his lesson after being imprisoned for 20 years and didn't want to talk about it anymore.
The nazi ideals still are very much apparent in modern times there are groups called the Neo Nazis that are still around and functioning today. I knew most of what they talked about concerning concentration camps except for how it was originally hypothesised to begin with, something this film showed me.
I agree with what Ani said, the whole idea of mindless obedience is sadly alive and well in today's society in places such as North Korea, but it does leech into many other places. One such place is actually the USA where we have tons of people who mindlessly follow what major news organizations, politicans, or other people say and take it as absolute information.
I agree with tom that people are too obedient to their government
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