Heritages

Three survivors from Auschwitz relate how and under which circumstances they made their horrific story known since their return. Their descendants express what impact these stories had on their lives and how it left a mark on their indentity. Thus a compelling and sometimes contradictory narrative builds up; it brings to light the impact of what is said and of what is not said upon three generations. In the end it raises the question of History handed down.

Social interest

A central feature of the world view of Adolf Hitler was an alleged struggle between Germany, as the only state capable of rescuing European Civilization, and an international Jewish conspiracy to subvert and dominate the world. He picked up these views from the popular anti-semitism of the time which saw Jews as either parasitical Capitalists or as revolutionary Bolsheviks. Although a written order from Hitler has never been found, it is important to note that every arm of Germany’s bureaucracy was involved in the logistics of the mass murder, turning the country into “a genocidal state.”

Historic Interest

In Nazi Germany 5 to 6 million jews were killed including 3 million Polish Jews; 212 Roma and Sinti Gypsies were also exterminated and 70 thousand disabled people. When Hitler took power in 1933, he began a slow process of reducing the Civil Rights and economic position of Germany’s half million Jews. This process was accompanied with violence and intimidation, culminating in Kristallnacht just prior to WWII. Initially, Hitler’s object was to exclude the Jews from Germany. The Nazis agreed with the Zionist movement to speed up emigration to Palestine or other European countries. However at the Evian conference in France only 2 out of the 32 countries present agreed to accept higher quotas of Jews. Britain restricted Jewish access to Palestine due to the growing civil war between there between the Arab population and Jewish settlers. The last emigrants left Germany in 1941.

Political interest

If it had not been for the horrors of the Holocaust and the way it shocked the world, the State of Israel might not have been established in 1948. Though genocide is not uncommon in human history, the extend and the efficiency with which the Nazi’s were able to execute the extermination of Jews and others left an non-eracable mark on modern history and politics. When the State of Israel was established in 1948, it was recognized by the US, the Soviet Union, and most other UN members, but not by the Neighboring Arab countries which refused to accept Israel as a legitimate state.

Style

During this last decade a large number of testimonial films, dedicated to the survivors of the Shoah, have been prompted by the same urge: the revisionist and negationist schemes regarding the Holocaust and the vulnerable state of the aging eyewitness. Distancing themselves from monumental enterprises – like Steven Spielberg’s Visual History Foundation – these works summon the elaboration of a specific testimonial pact that provides at once a space of transference between survivor and interviewer, and implies a special quality of listening and empathy.

Scenes

Auschwitz survivor about people dying there
A survivor of the concentration camp Auschwitz during the second world war tells about the people dying there and their last words. They all died with the words that ‘it’s got to be told’.
Auschwitz survivor about friendship and the will to survive
A survivor of the concentration camp Auschwitz during the second world war explains how she couldn’t have survived without the help and support from her group of friends in the camp. Also, the will to survive played an important role.
Auschwitz survivors and the way they talk about their past
The children and grandchildren of the survivors of concentration camp Auschwitz during the second world war are talking to the survivors. It becomes clear that the survived relatives had and still have a hard time talking about their personal experiences and emotions. The stories they have told their children and grandchildren about Auschwitz are of a more general type.
Auschwitz survivor, his son and the urge to tell his story
A survivor of the concentration camp Auschwitz during the second world war is talking to his son about the importance of passing on the knowledge about the dangers and horrors of the second world war. Despite the very difficult times, the survivor states that now he’s fully enjoying his life.
Auschwitz survivors, familymembers and heritage
The children and grandchildren of the survivors of concentration camp Auschwitz during the second world war tell about the role the stories of the survivors influenced their lives. It has become a part of their lives too and like their relatives, they too will probably pass the stories on to others.