Oskar Schindler

[War] brings out the worst in people. Never the good, always the bad. Even in the midst the devastation of a national genocide, where one race turned against another in hate, good people existed and worked to counteract the hate through love and compassion. Oskar Schindler was one of these people. World War II provided him the means to become a very wealthy and powerful man, yet he did not exploit the Jews like many other businessmen during his time. He used his money and power to save thousands. Much can be learned from what happened during the holocaust and what Schindler did to save thousands of Jews.

Oskar Schindler was a very complex and dynamic man. When the Nazi party rose to power and began to dominate and discriminate against people of Jewish decent, he took advantage of the situation and joined the Nazi party and moved to Poland to start a new business using the cheapest labor available—Jews. Schindler became congenial with the Nazis in authority there, partying, schmoozing, and sharing his wealth with them. From this he gained influence and contracts to produce goods.

However, Schindler’s personality changed over time as he saw the atrocities of war. His mindset changed from profiteer to philanthropist—he began to realize the effect he had on the people that worked for him. This is portrayed very candidly in the movie. In the beginning, Schindler turns to Itzak Stern and the Judenrat for money to purchase a factory to start his business. This is done not to help the Jews but purely to make money. Over time though, Schindler’s relationship with the Jews changed; he couldn’t sit back and allow the Nazis to continue to massacre the Jews. In the movie, Schindler’s opinion of the Nazis and the Jews was changed by one eve...

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... believe that something like the Holocaust can never happen again, they believe that the world has matured and that developed nations would not let this happen. However, genocide like the Holocaust can happen again if conditions exist that are similar to those in the pre-WWII time period. If major nations become embroiled with national issues and shift their focus away from the world, genocide can happen. Furthermore, the United States can’t always be the world’s police, especially if troops are already committed to a military campaign. Finally it would require a nation to commit such genocide, and that can occur in any nation that caught up in the emotion of nationalism that human rights become unthought-of. When these conditions coincide, the stage for genocide is set; a country can take advantage of the situation and commit genocide without the world intervening.