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?"
26 comments:
I do not agree with that statement. While I do believe that the ideas of living a structured life appeals to many, the Nazi principles are far too extreme for people to accept. Before watching this film, I was not aware of how awful the forms of trickery were. Jewish people were forced to run naked down corridors, thinking they were going into showers, but then actually being gassed. Additionally, the Nazis made some of the Jewish people bury the bodies of those who had died in mass graves before they themselves were murdered.
I don't agree with this statement because I think most people want their own individual rights and freedoms. I think order is essential to a society and that without it, things wouldn't be able to run well, but I also think that everyone wants to be able to make their own choices. Before watching this film, I didn't know that there were Jewish policemen that aided the Nazis in killing so many people. They were used to deceive the Jews into believing that they were just going to take showers, when in reality they were going to the gas chambers. I didn't know that the American soldiers forced the German civillians to dig up the mass graves and force them to see all of the dead bodies.
I do not agree with that statement. A structured society certainly appeals to society today, however I feel like members of society want to maintain the freedom that they have and make their own decisions and choices. Prior to watching this film, I wasn't aware of how many camps there were and how brutal they were. It was really heartbreaking to hear in detail how the camps were run. It was really interesting to hear stories from survivors and people who grew up during that horrific time, and I can only imagine what it was like for them.
I think this statement depends on what state the country is in. If a country is having economic, political, and other problems, similar to Germany was, I think the people might want a strong governing power that can take power and resolve the issues. On the other hand, they still want their own freedoms and they do not want the official to become a dictator or someone who can abuse their power. After events like Hitler's power I think the statement holds less truth. People are more cautious when it comes to electing leaders. I learned a lot about the final solution in the film about Treblinka. I knew about several concentration camps like Dachau and Auschwitz, but not about Treblinka. I learned more about those who lost their lives, witnesses who are still alive, and killers who believe they did nothing wrong.
I don't agree with that statement because I think that much of the ideals of that philosophy applied to the technologically advanced and "Iron-Fist" ruled Germany of that era. Citizens of the modern age want a strong government and a sense of order, but will exert their freedom of speech and individuality. They won't solely want to be obedient to the government. People are generally more conscientious of the morality of their actions, whether it is genuine or just fear of being portrayed as not politically correct. Taking from others, regardless of race, is viewed as bad in today's society, so the idea of seizure and struggle does not really apply.
I learned that innocent Jews were killed in public at first and then in gas chambers disguised as showers. I learned from the interview with Petras Zelionka, a member of the Lithuanian Auxiliary Police, that the soldiers did not see the wrong in their behavior and did not want to face up to their crimes.
I believe that the answer to that statement depends entirely on the state of the country. If the country is stable enough for average citizens to function normally everyday then no, I don't think the policies of obedience, seizure, and struggle would appeal. However if the country was in a bad state, as Germany was, then a charismatic leader could easily take control and implement such policies. Most people tend to go with the flow, so rather that fight for what they believe in, they would rather fall in line and follow the leader. Something i learned in this film is that Nazism had spread to the U.S. a lot earlier than i thought. I always thought that the neo nazis were the first signs of Nazism in America. Another thing i learned about was that Treblinka was an actual place. I knew of Auschwitz, because I've had to read many books about Holocaust survivors and their stories, and most of them experienced their struggles in Auschwitz, but i had never heard of Treblinka before in my life.
I agree with this statement. I believe that people are attracted to the idea that they are part of something that is bigger than themselves. The reason for this is because then they have the right to do whatever they want, and they can hide behind the group's identity. Also, they can blame all of their troubles on the groups enemies, saving them the stress of having to figure out why their problems are happening themselves, and allowing them to take out their frustrations on those enemies. That idea still appeals today, as shown by the Ku Klux Klan, Al-Qaeda, and the Lord's Army. From this film, I learned that Hitler would have won the war if he hadn't massacred Russian civilians, and had spent more time on fighter jets.
I do not agree with the statement because even though countries need structure and order, I would like to think people today know what is morally right and wrong and be able to make decisions for themselves rather than let others do it for you. While watching the movie I learned that the reason why it was so easy for Nazis to murder to many people was because they didn't think they were killing humans. They also were taught that Jews were the reasons their lives were horrible. It is a shame the Nazis couldn't realize what they were doing was horrible but today that is unacceptable.
I don't think this would still happen today because without hurler to brainwash his followers no one would think his ways would be a good idea so without the leader to control and brainwash his followers out of fear therefore if someone planned on a mass murder without gaining enough followers then it would not be able to happen again. I also learned from the film the difference between death camps and concentration camps.
I believe the philosophy of obedience, seizure and struggle could appeal to some people today. However, I don’t think it could ever reach the extreme that it did back in Nazi Germany. For example, I don’t think the world would ever let something like that happen again. After watching this film, I learned that the Nazi’s referred to the gas chambers as “the path to heaven,” which only shows their cruelness. I also learned that often times the killings/shootings of Jews were done by volunteers, and not the Nazis themselves. Lastly, I learned that most Jews were killed within three hours of arriving at the concentration camps. Once they were dead, they were stripped of their clothes (which the Nazis confiscated) and the bodies were buried in mass amounts under the ground in an effort to hide the killings, not because the Nazis were ashamed of them.
I believe that the reason the Nazi's were so appealing in the thirties was because people were looking for order. Unemployment was huge and the Nazi's offered a solution. People just wanted to belong to something. What I learned that I didn't know before was that the people sent to the death camps were murdered within a few hours of being there. I always had the impression that they worked there for a while before they were killed.
I agree with this statement to a certain extent. Although people do like to maintain their freedoms, they also like to be comfortable with food, shelter, and occupations. If the government can offer that after a period of struggle, it may be appealing. There are many countries today that are struggling & if a ruler came in with these promises, the citizens may accept it. I do not think anything as bad as the Holocaust will ever happen, though, but I do think that structure appeals to some nations, especially when the citizens are promised something in return. I learned that Treblinka existed because I had never heard of it before. I also learned that there were different kinds of concentration camps: slave labor or death. I thought everything was pretty much the same, meaning that people would go to labor camps and eventually get murdered.
I think the fact that the general public was obedient to the Nazis was a culmination of a dire situation following WWII, a desire to belong to a group, and several years of indoctrination, among other factors. I don't think the Nazi philosophy has much appeal today, but that human need to belong still exists as it is an innate human quality. From watching the film, I learned how quick and sudden the Jews were exterminated in the death camps. I also witnessed the sheer denial from Nazis today who have no remorse for what happened.
I do not agree with that statement. I don't think that today people would accept the Nazi's beliefs because they are much too extreme. While I do believe that people like the idea of a structured society, the way the Nazi's went about doing that is something I don't think anyone would want. Before watching this film, I did not know about the huge relationship Hitler had with Russia, and how his attacking civilians caused them to go against him. I also did not know that German civilians were forced by American soldiers to dig up bodies from the mass graves after the war.
I don't agree with this statement. Most people want their freedoms and rights. To have a good society you need to keep the government in check and not them have too much power. Before watching this movie I didn't know that the Jewish Police aided the Nazis. This was pretty horrific and I can't even image it.
i was absent in class this day
I agree and disagree with that statement. As many people still follow the principles of obedience, seizure and struggle today, it on a much lighter scale. People follow authority figure today and will always continue to follow them, like we saw in the Milgrim Experiment. although, people today are not as a appealed to the principals of the Nazis, they are still adopting them without realizing it. I learned from the documentary that the lies the Nazis created go much further than down then I thought; even Nazi authorities were not completely aware of what they were being instructed to do. they just did it and didn't think about it. I also learned that the Nazis destroyed camps to get rid of the evidence. The Nazis had no feeling of guilt or remorse for their actions
In a way i agree and disagree with this statement. I believe that today, people are not attracted to the idea of the Nazi. However, people do whatever they can to survive, even if that means going against their own personal beliefs. Before this film, I did not know so much about the struggle and how people would do anything to save themselves and their families. I thought it was amazing to see people go against orders and not wear the arm band. I have much respect for these people.
i believe that in country that is struggling economically the people may want a stronger government to step in, like what happened in germany. Other than a country in shambles, I think people always want their rights and wouldn't give up their rights so easily. Before watching this I had no idea that Jews joined the police force to keep other jews in check
I do not believe that statement. In the thirties people needed order and Hitler and the Nazis were the first to offer a system of order. The unemployment and poverty rates increased dramatically after the first war. Today, more people follow their own opinions and a barbaric policy like the Nazis presented would not survive. I learned that Jewish police had the same fate as Jewish refugees, and how quickly the Nazis forced Jews into ghettos and work camps.
i was absent during this class
I agree with the statement. I think it was clearest in the film when they were questioning the guards-polish men-who had participated in the shooting of Jewish men, children, and women. They were clearly supportive of the whole idea, they were not participating reluctantly. I think that this is the clearest example of how the Nazi ideology was much more than "a nation led astray by Hitler." The Poles had not had the years of indoctrinization that the Nazis had underwent, yet they were still embracing the killing of the Jews. I think that in several areas of the world today, if people were put in the same situation as the Poles, they would react in the same way. I had never heard of Treblinka before this film. I had not realized that the Nazis leveled certain camps. Also, I was not aware that some camps had no work section - they were purely for the systematic killing of Jews.
I agree withg this statement because the main attraction to the grouop was the united strenght onf it. being part of it gave y friends, colleagues and more. I think the siezure, the search and the identity of being a nazi made it popular and attractive to be in the n azis, and these standards stille xist in some groups today
i was absent
i was absent
I missed the end and part of the beginning of this film, but from what I saw I believe that the statement being made is somewhat true. Before watching this film I didn't know that any Jews fought back using violence during the Holocaust.
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