History
IEB ALTERNATE TASK
Analysis of photograph
Chantal Torre
Photo taken by Peter Leibing
Historical Context
The Berlin Wall was constructed in 1961 by the GDR (German Democratic Republic - (East Germany) under the pretext of keeping out the fascist enemy infiltrating from West Germany. In actual fact, the wall was built to keep in the population of the GDR, many of whom were fleeing to a better life in West Berlin and other European Countries. Armed border guards were sworn to protect East Germany however they knew that a better life existed on the other side of the wall. The photographer, Peter Leibing, captured the moment in history, when the first GDR Border Guard , Conrad Schumann, finally got the courage to desert his post and leap over the barricade (at that point still a barbed wire fence).
Impact of this image on society and the population of the GDR.
Conrad Schumann was symbolic of the fact that escape from communist East Germany was the only way forward. This photograph became entitled “the leap of freedom” and the image of this 19 year old depicted hope for many people in the GDR who felt the coming isolation. . The photograph depicted the desperation felt by GDR citizens and
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It became known as “the leap into freedom” and Schumann was recognised as both a traitor to East Germany and a hero of the free world. The photograph won the Overseas Press Club Best Photograph award for 1961. From a western perspective, it was believed that this depicted the desperation felt by GDR population as a whole, and that they would do anything to escape the bounds of the brainwashing system of the communist regime. This was a true trigger to others to follow and because of this Schumann was considered a heroic figure for his bravery and willingness to risk a treason charge and his
The tragedies of the holocaust forever altered history. One of the most detailed accounts of the horrific events from the Nazi regime comes from Elie Wiesel’s Night. He describes his traumatic experiences in German concentration camps, mainly Buchenwald, and engages his readers from a victim’s point of view. He bravely shares the grotesque visions that are permanently ingrained in his mind. His autobiography gives readers vivid, unforgettable, and shocking images of the past. It is beneficial that Wiesel published this, if he had not the world might not have known the extent of the Nazis reign. He exposes the cruelty of man, and the misuse of power. Through a lifetime of tragedy, Elie Wiesel struggled internally to resurrect his religious beliefs as well as his hatred for the human race. He shares these emotions to the world through Night.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in East Berlin at the time when the Berlin Wall was up and Germany was still split between West and East? Jennifer A. Nielsen’s standalone book, A Night Divided, explains life through twelve year old Gerta’s point of view. Her family’s escape story can teach us many things even if they are not a real life family. The many struggles and victories that they experienced can teach the reader life lessons as well as educate them on life in East Berlin during the time the Berlin Wall was in place.
This 3-D diorama illustrates a significant scene in the novel Night. This story originated during the First World War in Sighet, Hungary. The Nazis were in power and they wanted to exterminate the Jewish population; this was referred to as the Holocaust. The religious town of Sighet has not been raided yet, so they’re expecting for the best. The main characters are Elizer and his father. Sadly, the Nazis reach Sighet and gather the Jews. They could only bring what they could carry, so homes and other valuables were left alone. In this scene, the Jewish population of the small town are being deported to Auschwitz. Auschwitz was the first concentration camp they were sent to, so this was going to have a huge impact on their lives. In the small cattle car, there is Elizer, his father, Madame Schächter and the other Jews. They have reached the Auschwitz station, but the Birkenau concentration camp is where the real danger lies. In the Auschwitz station, the saying “ARBEIT MACHT FREI” translated to “work will set you free.” This meant that they would be used for labour till they died. They were burned and brutally tortured in Birkenau. Only several people amongst the group moved on, but the rest was history. The tragedy of the Holocaust is not any fairy tale; therefore, this book is filled with discomfort, illness and death.
Again, I had difficulty selecting which piece to use for my second piece. Ultimately I selected Temptation, 1880 William-Adolphe Bouguereau. The dimensions are 39x52 inches and is oil on canvas.
In society we are surrounded by images, immersed in a visual world with symbols and meaning created through traditional literary devices, but augmented with the influence of graphics, words, positioning and colour. The images of Peter Goldsworthy’s novel, Maestro (1989) move within these diameters and in many ways the visions of Ivan Sen’s film Beneath Clouds (2002) linger in the same way. Both these texts explore themes of appearance versus reality and influence of setting, by evoking emotion in the responder through their distinctively visual elements.
During World War II, after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, Japanese Americans in the western United States were forced into internment camps because the government felt as though the Japanese were dangerous if they were not relocated. These camps were usually in poor condition and in deserted areas of the nation. The Japanese were forced to make the best of their situation and thus the adults farmed the land and tried to maximize leisure while children attempted to enjoy childhood. The picture of the internee majorettes, taken by internee and photographer Toyo Miyatake, shows sixteen girls standing on bleachers while posing in front of the majestic Sierra Nevada mountain range and desolate Manzanar background. Their faces show mixed expressions of happiness, sadness and indifference, and their attire is elegant and American in style. With the image of these smiling girls in front of the desolate background, Miyatake captures an optimistic mood in times of despair. Though this photograph is a representation of the Manzanar internment camp and, as with most representations, leaves much unsaid, the majorette outfits and smiling faces give a great deal of insight on the cooperative attitudes of Japanese Americans and their youth's desire to be Americanized in this time.
In the year 1961, the building of the Berlin Wall called upon disasters in Germany. The United States controlled the west of Berlin while the German Democratic Republic held the East. Being stuck under the rule of day-to-day terror, people from East Berlin were making their way to the West Berlin. West Berlin is a safe spot and a free checkpoint in the middle of terror. To stop the movement of East Berliners, the East German government decided to build a barrier that limited and halted the East Berliners from leaving.
We first see a boy with a feeling of hope and ignorance as his hometown is occupied and he’s moved into the ghetto. Then, as he’s transferred to a concentration camp, he questions his faith and slowly loses a sense of who he once was. But all of this puts him in an important position, he knows that he must share with the world what he has experienced in order to prevent a repeat of what happened in the camps. Here he is no longer ignorant of the world around him, here he experienced one of the darkest times in man's history.
“‘Well, Jacob Weisz, that was a brave thing you just did’ the old man said. ‘Brave, indeed.’” This is what describes Jacob Weisz, the main character of Joel C. Rosenberg’s The Auschwitz Escape, a suspenseful and thrilling historical fiction novel. Jacob is a very courageous, hopeful, and brave twenty-two-year-old that lives in Siegen, Germany. This book takes place in a few different places but the main location is Germany and it is during Hitler’s rise to power. Jacob goes through a lot during this journey of saving Jews and trying to stay alive in a death camp ruled by Nazis. I believe that you have to be courageous to get through hard times but as this courage builds, it can take you to some very dangerous circumstances and lead you to get
"The persecution of the Jews in the General Government in Polish territory gradually worsened in its cruelty. In 1939 and 1940 they were forced to wear the Star of David and were herded together and confined in ghettos. In 1941 and 1942 this unadulterated sadism was fully revealed. And then a thinking man, who had overcome his inner cowardice, simply had to help. There was no other choice."
Notably, before the walls creation, Germany was a political mess. It was a mess for many reasons, but the main being that “West Germany (governed by the Allied powers- the United States, the United Kingdom, and France) and East Germany (governed by the Soviet Union)” (“Cold War”). Of course, the Allied Powers and the Soviet Union were polar opposites; the Soviet Union was Communist while the Allies were anything but, and despised the very idea of Communism. Therefore, The Wall was constructed in 1961 by the East German government. The walls main purpose was to stop the emigration of East German citizens, because in “1953, the number of refugees doubled- more than 400,000 people left”, all of whom were heading to West Germany (Dowling). They wanted to stop the “skilled workers and professionals”, which were in high demand at this time, from leaving (“Berlin Wall”). These young men were valuable to the economy, because of the various products and services they could provide. However, they were trapped against their will in East Berlin;...
The Berlin Wall, built in August of 1961, was s physical symbol of the political and emotional divisions of Germany. The Wall was built because of a long lasting suspicion between the Soviet Union on one side and Western Europe and the United States on the other. For 28 years the Berlin Wall separated friends, families, and a nation. After WWII was over Germany was divided into four parts. The United States, Great Britain, and France controlled the three divisions that were formed in the Western half and the Eastern half was controlled by the Soviet Republic. The Western sections eventually united to make a federal republic, while the Eastern half became communist.
The motivation behind Schumann being both to maintain the public’s distraction from the President’s indiscretions and to inspire blind patriotism. Schumann’s construction is undertaken as absurdly as the Albanian girl scene, again using a sentimental plea to encourage emotional investment with the words “courage, mom”. Although Levinson challenges the morality of political motivation to a greater extent as it is revealed that William Schumann is in fact an imprisoned sex offender. Regardless of this revelation, Schumann goes on to be worshipped as an American hero, a direct comparison to the President, who’s alleged sexual assault of a child is the entire purpose behind the fake war distraction. Levinson presents the presidency as morally bankrupt. This undermines the politcal force of an institution that is supposed to be regarded with the highest honour and forces the responder to question the extent the government will go to remain in power. This by extension challenges the integrity of the democratic system in its
“What do you expect? That’s war…” Elie Wiesel, young teenage boy sent to work in a concentration camp with his family near the end of WW2. Author of his own autobiography, Night recounting his struggles during that time. This book is about a boy named Elie Wiesel who was captured by the Nazi’s and was put into a concentration camp, and got disconnected from God, and was very close to his mom, dad, and family. Throughout Night Elie Wiesel addresses the topic of genocide through the use of imagery, simile, and personification.
Second of all the Berlin Wall was built was because of before it all started East Germany’s leader Erich Honecker demand the wall to be built because of many events happen. Also is because Erich Honecker wanted to cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and East B...