Understanding The Holocaust Through "Schindler's List"

The worst genocide to have occurred in history is to be named The Holocaust. The Holocaust is described by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as “a sacrifice consumed by fire” or “a mass slaughter of people.” (Holocaust) The torture began in the year 1933 and lasted more than a decade which ended in 1945. Adolfo Hitler, who was the Nazi leader, specifically chose the Jewish people to scapegoat. He also replied to those who were homosexuals and had other religious beliefs. Jews were forced away from their homes and were separated from their families, men on one side and women including children on another side. Later it got to the point to where he chose to take anyone who randomly came across his way. Many people tried to help and save the Jewish people. Some did not succeed at it and some like the Swedish government and Oskar Schindler did successfully save some Jews.

The swedish government offered asylum to about 7,000 Jews to Denmark. After they were saved, about a month later authorities were warned about Germany invading Denmark and urged the Jews to hide quickly. Fishermen ferries were organized to complete the effort of smuggling Jews from Denmark to Sweden. (Rescue in Denmark) Oskar Schindler saved about 1,200 Jewish people as well. He owned a factory that composed enamelware which created plates and bowls. In a movie created about Oskar Schindler's called “Schindler's List”, there was a scene that showed Jews working at his factory and the factories actually created a “soup pot”. Schindler was a factory owner of a factory that is still up till this day as a museum and it is called, “Fabryka Oskara Schindlera-Emalia”. Oskar employed many, many Jews and he treated them so well. He fed them and never let them starve and he made sure they always had clothes and nothing was ever missing for them. Overall, Oskar had very much respect for his employees and not once did he mistreat them. In the movie, there was a scene that Jews were ordered to be relocated and in that ruckus, his employees, including his accountant Itzhak Stern, were taken without a trace. Once Oskar knew about this he took charge and confronted all of the officials and after many threats, they finally released all of his employees and he was able to take them back to the factory.

Throughout the movie, I was truly filled with many mixed emotions and at some times in the movie, I was at lost for words. I definitely had questions I kept asking for example, why didn't Schindler create more factories and hire more Jews? Even if he was only interested in the money that was coming in for him, I’m sure he would have saved a lot of more Jewish people from horrible massacre occurring outside of the factory. The movie was created in pure black and white so when I came across the scene where there was a liquidation happening, there was a little girl who was focused on for a glimpse and she had on a red coat. I'm sure everyone who saw the movie was definitely questioning that specific part. I have concluded that the scene was created to signify the death of those innocent and young children like her. It saddens me to know that even through this catastrophe, young children were involved and those who were being ruthless and careless honestly don't care if there were children or not.

They obeyed orders and did as was told. There a couple of scenes where Jewish were giving their names to people who were giving their names to people who were set up at desks. Throughout those scenes, people were signing up to be accounted for but also wee registering themselves for Schindler's business to be protected. In one of the scenes, Schindler's accountant, Itzhak Stern, is helping many Jews and speaking for them and telling the registrar's that those Jews can do machinery work or have worked with metal so that they may qualify to work for Schindler's factory. Oskar Schindler was constantly bribing the Nazi officials and always gifting them with luxurious items but only so that he was able to keep his employees safe. Even though Schindler was only interested in making money from his business he also chose the Jewish people because they were way cheaper than the Poles. When the war ended, he gathered all of his workers and sat with them in the middle of the factory and listened to the radio all together while it was mentioned that Germany surrendered and the war in Europe was finally over. Schindler's List was a very interesting movie.

Not only was I learning more information based on the Holocaust, I was also granted to view the Holocaust from a different perspective. I have watched the movie, “The Boy In The Striped Pajamas” and although it talks about the same topic, it shows different forms of the Holocaust. Schindler's List was about Oskar Schindler and how he was able to save the many Jews who were able to work with him and survive the blizzard occurrence that happened for a little more than a decade.