There was a time of history where the entire world was watching an unthinkable tragedy take place, the Holocaust. The film industry exploded with the creation of Holocaust films. From Germany to America, before, during, and after WWII, films portraying the Holocaust took center stage. Interestingly enough, America was not directly effected by the events taking place in Europe. There are accusations towards America asking why did we not help? "How is it possible for a influential country to just sit back and watch a genocide take place?"(CITE) How is it possible for a country who was not directly affected by the Holocaust create many influential films depicted the Holocaust, such as The Diary of Anne Frank (1959), Schindler 's List (1993), and The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008)? This is where the Americanization of the Holocaust begins. These films are recognized in Europe as being highly influential as well. This welcomes the question as to whether Americanization in film leads to misinterpretations of the true historical account of the Holocaust. Film professor, Ilan Avisar …show more content…
Directed by George Stevens, the film came out only twelve years after The Diary of Anne Frank the book was first published. The film is adapted from the real journal entries of Anne Frank, a thirteen year old Jew hiding in a secret room with her family in Nazi-invaded Holland. The journal entries are filled with stories about her parents, her time in the "Secret Annex", and honest, daily thoughts of a thirteen year old girl. The book first came out in 1947, only two years after WWII was over. After the first publishing in Holland, The Diary’s impact moved to America. "The Diary of Anne Frank evolved from a particularly European work written by a young Jew hiding from Nazis in Holland to a more Americanized, universal symbol." (Book, Doneson) EXPLAIN
The film relates how Anne and her family tried to survive Nazi persecution in Amsterdam by hiding in her father's office building, aided by trusted friends. Growing up anne was a child that wanted to know everything and ask lots of questions. Anne and her family were hiding for 2 years and everyday she will write in her diary. When the jews were segregated they weren't allowed to have businesses but the father continue to run the business with the trust of christians.During the two years anne and her family was hiding in fear didn’t stop them from celebrating hanukkah. After two years when anne was 15 her and her family was caught and sent to concentration camps where she later died at the age of
The Holocaust impacted Americans in a number of ways. On one note the Holocaust instilled a number of fears into American’s minds. One being that Americans feared Nazis infiltration (American and the Holocaust: Exploring US Responses) The Nazis and their ability to invade was unprecedented during this time period and their main targets were Jews and non- Aryans thus, Americans feared that by raising immigration quotas and allowing an abundant amount of Jewish refugees into America it would set off Nazis and they would attack America at its heart. Along with fears of infiltration there were financial fears that Americans were facing which lead to the govt. being against reforming the quotas, due to the depression that Americans were dealing with. America’s original solution to settling these fears was the concept of isolationism, so they could focus on domestic issues (Holocaust memorial museum). One of the general issues that arose during the Holocaust was that the subject matter addressed during the Holocaust as far as U.S laws went was an unprecedented event that w...
Anne’s diary has been written in 67 different languages. When her diary was first published it was called “Anne Frank” they soon changed it to “Anne Frank the Diary of a Young Girl”. (http://apecsec.org/7-interesting-facts-about-anne-frank/). Some people saw that Anne’s diary is a forgery like the Holocaust was (http://mentalfloss.com/article/51367/10-things-know-about-anne-franks-diary-young-girl). Many places have actually banned Anne’s diary saying it “pornographic” to some. Anne’s original diary contains on autograph book, two notebooks, and three hundred sixty (360) loose pages. Anne’s diary was originally first written in Dutch and was published in 1947. Later it was published in America on June 16, 1952
[2] Manipulated history used in an inappropriate manner is one of the ways in which the Nazis were able to convince so many people to follow their evil and tyrannical beliefs. This is not something that we as Americans can have happen. History in the cinema should be a carefully monitored area, so as to prevent fictional accounts to be passed as the truth. If we allow our screenwriters and directors to have free reign in the movies, they could theoretically conjure up any scenario that they pleased and pass it off as an actual event. This can not be so. If history is to be conveyed through film, it should be of the highest accuracy. Many people rely on what they see as fact so that if all movies decided to create a “history” that never happened, a large percentage of the American population would fall victim to their chicanery.
Dr. Zuroff discussed this by talking about how the Holocaust could possibly be presented in other countries. The specific example he used is saying that what the president of Iran simply got on television and told people that the Holocaust never happened it was all a stunt that was created. Due to the president being a respected figure in society everyone will believe him. Also due to the platform used the country will also believe him. This is an example of the spiral of silence theory. In this theory small people who are not able to get inside the media are neglected. Of course in any country where the Jewish community is not the majority they have the chance to be forgotten or silenced by the media. As a minority group there is many things that a group may experience and it may be something that is extremely important and the rest of the world may need to be made aware of it but, it will never happen because that’s not what the majority opinion is. This theory explain how media shapes the people’s opinion because they have the ability
The Holocaust was a very impressionable period of time. It not only got media attention during that time, but movies, books, websites, and other forms of media still remember the Holocaust. In Richard Brietman’s article, “Lasting Effects of the Holocaust,” he reviews two books and one movie that were created to reflect the Holocaust (BREITMAN 11). He notes that the two books are very realistic and give historical facts and references to display the evils that were happening in concentration camps during the Holocaust. This shows that the atrocities that were committed during the Holocaust have not been forgotten. Through historical writings and records, the harshness and evil that created the Holocaust will live through centuries, so that it may not be repeated again (BREITMAN 14).
Reading, Anna. "Young People's Viewing Of Holocaust Films In Different Cultural Contexts." Holocaust And The Moving Image (2005): 210-216. RAMBI. Web. 10 Oct. 2013.
The Holocaust is considered the largest genocide of our entire world, killing more than 600,000,000 Jewish people during the years of 1933-1945. The memories and history that have filled our lives that occurred during the Holocaust are constantly remembered around the world. Many populations today “think” that constant reminders allow for us to become informed and help diminish the hatred for other races still today. These scholars believe that by remembering the Holocaust, you are able to become knowledgeable and learn how to help prevent this from happening again. Since the Holocaust in a sense impacted the entire human race and history of the world, there are traces of the Holocaust all across our culture today. As I continue to remember the victims of this tragic time period I think of all the ways that our world remembers the Holocaust in today’s society. Through spreading the word, works of media and memorials across the world, I am continually reminded of the tragedy that occurred.
Last semester my documentary production professor told my classmates and I to avoid making films that were too much like Holocaust or civil rights films. This really struck me as an almost cold statement, however this semester in both this class and the film and Holocaust class that I took I began to understand what he meant. After reading much of Aaron Kerner’s book I saw even more, it wasn’t a statement on the subject matter but the filmic techniques that have been overused in the genres. The most burnt out are the tropes within each film; like the crafty jew trope, the jew as a victim, or as a hero, and the usage of naziploitation. These are all found in films revolving around the Holocaust and the film Europa Europa (Agnieska Holland, 1990)
The process of publishing the book and producing the film were put in a lot of effort. The diary of Anne Frank was discovered by Miep Gies in Mr. and Mrs. Franks’ bedroom, and she risked her life to keep the diary and some papers with Anne’s handwriting (Gies 173). After the war, Miep gave Anne’s diary back to Anne’s father, Otto Frank. Anne had revised her diary for several times, and Otto Frank published her diary with few changes in 1947. In 1995, there was definitive edition being published, and it restored some part has been deleted by Otto Frank including her complains about her mother, the Van Daans and her curiosity about the changes in her body (Prose 6-9). People were argued about whether Otto Frank should take out some sharpest comments of Anne’s diary. People thought Otto Frank was too easily forget what German had done to Jews, and he changed some themes of Anne’s Diary. But some people argued that he did this because he wanted to make her daughter seems like a better person, and he wanted to protect some sensitive things happened in the annex (Prose 75). The film the diary of Anne Frank was produced by BBC, and PB...
The Anne Frank House is based on the story that was taken from Anne’s diary. The history said when she got a small note book as her birthday present from her father, she used it as a diary to write over her feeling since Nazi ran the government in Germany. Frank family one of around thousand families who left from German because of the economic crisis and they are a German Jew. After Nazi came to Amsterdam, where Frank’s family lived for about 7 years, they lived in the secret apartment behind the books shelf. However, they were finally caught by the Nazi’s because someone had told the secret place. Otto Frank was the only family member who saved. Frank, her mother and her sister, Mo were sent to a concentrate compound. In the compound, Frank and her sister were seperated with their mother. Both of them died because of
When the Holocaust first started in 1933, America acted as if Hitler and his actions were nonexistent. America’s ignorance towards the war lasted for almost three years until finally, near the end of 1945, the news was finally spreading about the Holocaust and the mass execution
In June 1942 Anne received a diary for her 13th birthday. She began to write down her thoughts and experiences in the form of letters to an imaginary friend. One month later the Franks went into hiding in the office building. For the next two years the Frank family shared cramped quarters with four other Jewish people. In the ending the people she lived with were the ones that published her diary.
“Those who kept silent yesterday will remain silent tomorrow” -Elie Wiesel. The Holocaust is a very common topic to read and to be taught about, especially in the form of fictional books. It is usually taught to make people remember what really happened in the past so that history doesn’t repeat itself. Often times, people tend to take the Holocaust, a topic that is despicable, not as seriously as it should be taken. It tends to be sugarcoated, or “fictionalized” to the point where it's just inappropriate. Sugarcoating serious matters, like the Holocaust, is surely not acceptable. An example of such intolerability is The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne.
On June 12, 1929, at 7:30 AM, a baby girl was born in Frankfort, Germany. No one realized that this infant, who was Jewish, was destined to become one of the worlds most famous victims of World War II. Her name was Anne Frank. Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, by Anne Frank and B.M. Mooyaart, was actually the real diary of Anne Frank. Anne was a girl who lived with her family during the time while the Nazis took power over Germany. Because they were Jewish, Otto, Edith, Margot, and Anne Frank immigrated to Holland in 1933. Hitler invaded Holland on May 10, 1940, a month before Anne?s eleventh birthday. In July 1942, Anne's family went into hiding in the Prinsengracht building. Anne and her family called it the 'Secret Annex'. Life there was not easy at all. They had to wake up at 6:45 every morning. Nobody could go outside, nor turn on lights at night. Anne mostly spent her time reading books, writing stories, and of course, making daily entries in her diary. She only kept her diary while hiding from the Nazis. This diary told the story of the excitement and horror in this young girl's life during the Holocaust. Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl reveals the life of a young innocent girl who is forced into hiding from the Nazis because of her religion, Judaism. This book is very informing and enlightening. It introduces a time period of discrimination, unfair judgment, and power-crazed individuals, and with this, it shows the effect on the defenseless.