Research blog 5

The quality of transportation of Jewish people during the Holocaust was similar to transporting animals. They were mostly transported via cattle car, a train with a small car on it that the Nazis would stuff with people. They had to wait in these cars for long periods of time, during which they had to remain standing. When they arrived, they were loaded off like cattle, and herded towards an officer who would advise them on where to go. Just like cattle, they were herded to slaughter.

Comparison blog 4

The characters in Emil and Karl and Annexed are being affected by the same problem, but are very different and unique in how they cope with it. Emil and Karl run and hide everywhere they can, while Peter stays in one place. All of the characters have someone they love taken away from them. Emil and Karl lose their parents and Peter loses his girlfriend. The characters have a large age difference as well; Emil and Karl are children and Peter is nearing 20. This results in them handling the problem in a variety of ways. Emil and Karl, as I said before, run and try to find someone to help them and they found a kind hearted person whenever they tried. Peter on the other hand, has to stay with a family he hates and if he tries to run away, he will be killed or worse.

Answers to One Survivor Remembers

1. I think the most powerful image was the thought of being able to do nothing but fantasize about a normal day. This made me think that most people take a normal day for granted.

2. The Nazis would take all of the Jewish peoples' possessions, take their clothing and shave their entire bodies. Gerda had a caring woman looking after her and many loyal friends.

3. If everything were taken away from me, I would miss my bow the most. When I first began archery, I believed the bow was just a weapon, but as I progressed I discovered the bow isn't just a tool to shoot and kill, it is also a tool to bring peace to the archer. I think that in that time of loss, peace would be much needed.

4. Even today, Jews are discriminated against. We can help by making it known that everyone is different, but should be treated equally.

5. To me, the heroes of this film were the American soldiers because we helped out everyone in Europe and this was the American's decision. I'm glad that there have always been people who've wanted to help out each other and I'm positive those sort of people are still around today.

Beginning of Annexed

The story begins with Peter van Pels leaving his home and heading to a ghetto known as the Annex. He has been forced to leave because of his faith and the consequences of him remaining could be very serious. The Van Pels' neighbors and friends have been attacked and taken by the Nazis and on his way to the ghetto, he discovers his girlfriend is being taken to a camp. Nobody ever got the chance to say goodbye. He arrives at an office building and heads up a few flights of stairs. He enters the temporary home of his least favorite people, the Franks. This is where he will wait... for either salvation or death.

Emil And Karl Beginning

The book "Emil and Karl" by Yankev Glatshteyn starts right with action. It begins with men infiltrating Karl's home, taking his mother, and beating him up. He has no idea why these men came seeing as he and his mother weren't Jewish and it was Nazi soldiers who took his mother away. His first action is to go to his best friend's house. Emil and his family are Jewish and the same thing happened to him recently, but the men took away his father. Normally, Emil's mother would tell Karl to go home because she didn't trust him, but this time she let him in without even caring. The reason she was so careless was she was shocked by the unexpected kidnapping of her husband. Karl explained what happened to Emil and his mother, but only Emil reacted. Karl spent the night at Emil's house and when they woke up, Emil's mother was in the same spot as before, occasionally sobbing. After trying to get her attention for a few hours and failing, the rabbi came to their house to check on them. After seeing the state Emil's mother was in, he had some people take her to the doctor. Emil and Karl then went and slept in the basement of Karl's apartment building because they had nowhere else to go. The next day the janitor found the boys and took them in. Both Emil and Karl were now without parents, and had to find some way to get back the family members the Nazis took away from them.

Inferences on Night

Today we read a small passage from the book "Night". In the passage, it describes the ordeal of a group of Jews, traveling to what I think is a work camp. I'm not entirely sure where this passage is in the book but it seem's as if the characters have already been introduced so they don't actually show many names in this passage. Throughout the passage, it shows the problems the group of Jews are facing such as small, uncomfortable spaces on a train, rude German soldiers yelling and making fun of them, and having to endure hours upon hours of being near a madwoman who is constantly screaming "Fire! Fire!". It's difficult to imagine how terrible this situation would be, since the characters have obviously been taken away from their families and are heading into enemy territory.

You Make Your Own Endings

Last summer I read a series known as The Last Apprentice. It's possibly one of the darkest books I've ever read but also the most interesting because it isn't the usual sort of good guy vs. bad guy and the good guy saves the day and they live happily ever after. No. This series is the exact opposite. Everything ends in the hero's favor however there's always some sort of consequence that comes with his victory. I enjoyed that the author wrote a story with a somewhat realistic ending. These books demonstrate that even the darkest parts of life can be fought through. There is always a light at the end of the tunnel. Regardless of what happens there always is some way of getting through it. It won't always be a happy ending, but then again, there's always an ending. It's your choice as to whether or not it's happy. The outcome is always in your power. You just might not know it, but, the faster you realize you make your own endings, the better.

Kobe