A theme in “Our Secret,” by Susan Griffin that is developed through the character of Himmler, and the symbolism with the development of a cell is that if individuals hide constantly behind masks, they will struggle internally.
The character of Himmler reflects how masks are developed at an early age, and how individuals start to hide behind them frequently in order to gain acceptance from others. However, by pretending to be something that a person is not, that individual starts to become frustrated about his identity, and codependence may be developed. In “Our Secret,” Himmler is given a journal during his childhood to start developing his writing skills, and because he is told by his father that he needs to start to maturate. According to Griffin, “Heinrich …. does not write of his feelings …. Or dreams,” and that “[the] entries … [are] like the words of a schoolboy commanded to write what the teacher requires of him” (Griffin 315). In this statement Griffin emphasizes that when a person writes in a journal feelings can be perceived through the writing, but in Himmler’s case, he was taught by his father to regulate his emotions by constraining the display of such. Additionally, by limiting Himmler’s expressions to what was considered appropriate, he started to develop codependence on his father while he was struggling inside. Therefore, the only way that Himmler found a solution to his struggles was by portraying the image of the child his father wanted him to be, while inside he was feeling insecure and frustrated. Griffin also gives the idea that individuals hide behind masks to find acceptance, and to look ordinary because appearing otherwise would be improper. This is addressed when Griffin states, “ordinary … a kind of m...
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...ords, she expresses how living under a mask is as like living trapped within oneself.
In summation, a theme in “Our Secret,” by Susan Griffin that is developed through the character of Himmler, and the symbolism with the development of a cell is that if individuals hide constantly behind masks, they will struggle internally. By giving this message Griffin is able to give the idea that at the end of the day, there are some things that cannot be ignored because one thing is certain, whatever it is that people are trying to hide, it will start piling up, until it does not leave room for anything else. Moreover, she shows the importance of opening the door to whatever cage people put themselves in because by allowing themselves to show their true self, they will enjoy how good it can feel when secrets are free, and hiding behind a mask is will not be longer necessary.
Irish Playwright, George Bernard Shaw, once said, “The worst sin toward our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them; that's the essence of inhumanity.” Inhumanity is mankind’s worse attribute. Every so often, ordinary humans are driven to the point were they have no choice but to think of themselves. One of the most famous example used today is the Holocaust. Elie Wiesel’s memoir Night demonstrates how fear is a debilitating force that causes people to lose sight of who they once were. After being forced into concentration camps, Elie was rudely awakened into reality. Traumatizing incidents such as Nazi persecution or even the mistreatment among fellow prisoners pushed Elie to realize the cruelty around him; Or even the wickedness Elie himself is capable of doing. This resulted in the loss of faith, innocence, and the close bonds with others.
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.
In conclusion, Elie Wiesel’s novel Night shows us the dehumanization in the concentration camps by using tone, symbolism, and imagery. He sets the tone with the deep, dark ways he describes the terrible things that have happened to him and millions of others. His symbolic examples explain a further meaning than just an object, and the way he describes everything he saw in great detail, is
The narrator's life is filled with constant eruptions of mental traumas. The biggest psychological burden he has is his identity, or rather his misidentity. He feels "wearing on the nerves" (Ellison 3) for people to see him as what they like to believe he is and not see him as what he really is. Throughout his life, he takes on several different identities and none, he thinks, adequately represents his true self, until his final one, as an invisible man.
“The Perils of Indifference” In April, 1945, Elie Wiesel was liberated from the Buchenwald concentration camp after struggling with hunger, beatings, losing his entire family, and narrowly escaping death himself. He at first remained silent about his experiences, because it was too hard to relive them. However, eventually he spoke up, knowing it was his duty not to let the world forget the tragedies resulting from their silence. He wrote Night, a memoir of his and his family’s experience, and began using his freedom to spread the word about what had happened and hopefully prevent it from happening again.
The unimaginable actions from German authorities in the concentration camps of the Holocaust were expected to be tolerated by weak prisoners like Wiesel or death was an alternate. These constant actions from the S.S. officers crushed the identification of who Wiesel really was. When Wiesel’s physical state left, so did his mental state. If a prisoner chose to have a mind of their own and did not follow the S.S. officer’s commands they were written brutally beaten or even in severe cases sentenced to their death. After Wiesel was liberated he looked at himself in the mirror and didn’t even recognize who he was anymore. No prisoner that was a part of the Holocaust could avoid inner and outer turmoil.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is a story filled with many emotions that help to bring the characters to life with many of them going through hardships and feelings of great loss. Death states, “I’m always finding humans at their best and worst. I see their ugly and their beauty, and I wonder how the same thing can be both” (Zusak 491). The characters in The Book Thief such as Liesel, Hans, Rosa, Rudy, and Max find themselves in situations where they have to act a certain way so as to not put their own lives in danger. Even if they don’t believe in the same things or have the same values as the Nazi Party, they must pretend in order to keep themselves from danger. Sometimes in order to protect themselves and each other, they must do things that would be considered either ugly or beautiful actions.
Griffin explores Heinrich Himmler and the secrets that are hidden within him. Throughout his childhood Himmler’s secrets and thoughts were hidden, overshadowed by a mask or barrier formed by his upbringing and culture.
Behind a Mask is a book that demonstrates the power a woman possesses. During a time in which those who are not rich are considered mere human beings, Louisa May Alcott creates a character by the name of Jean Muir who surpasses the society she lives in. Muir is a woman who seeks to have a prestigious title that will give her the recognition she desires. As governess to the Coventry family Muir puts in play a plan to marry Sir John, the old uncle in the family, whose title she wants. In the process of getting sir John’s tittle Jean causes controversy in between the family which results as a positive thing for the family as a whole. While stepping over the boundaries set by her society, Muir takes a journey which she must face with intelligence and courage.
This connects to the theme ¨Speak up because you never know what might happen¨ and shows how if they were would have spoke up and suck together things could may be different. He said, ¨When the Nazis came for the communists, I remained silent: I was not a communist.¨(Niemoller, 1,2,3). Also, ¨When they came for me, there was no one left to speak out.¨(Niemoller, 13,14). This is an clear examples of the theme and explains it
This shows how silence encourages the tormentor, Hitler, as the tormentor did not decline in progress, but merely perpetuated in progress since no one stopped him from doing so, not even those who had heard the warning. The price of silence was also paid by the people who were indifferent and quiet about the injustice, A majority of them died. However those who speak out against the injustice were also killed. Such as the hangings of the pipel who was under the service of the Oberkapo of the 52nd cable Kommando. He was hanged for taking part in preparing for a rebellion, “But his young pipel remained behind, in solitary confinement. He too was tortured, but he too remained silent. The SS then condemned him to death, him and two other inmates who had been found to possess arms.”(pg 64)
Bruno, an eight year old boy at the time of the war, is completely oblivious to the atrocities of the war around him - even with a father who is a Nazi commandant. The title of the book is evidence to this - Bruno perceives the concentration camp uniforms as "striped pajamas." Further evidence is the misnomers "the Fury," (the Furher) and "Out-With" (Auschwitz). Bruno and Shmuel, the boy he meets from Auschwitz, share a great deal in common but perhaps what is most striking is the childhood innocence which characterizes both boys. Bruno is unaware that his father is a Nazi commandant and that his home is on ther periphery of Auschwitz. Shmuel, imprisoned in the camp, seems not to understand the severity of his situation. When his father goes missing, Shmuel does not understand that he has gone to the gas chamber.
Many people hide from problems in the world such as abortions, capital punishments, AIDS, hunger and death and diseases. The silence of the world is the most deadliest thing on earth because we just let things pass us by and the more we do that the more we become extinct (book 5). For example, when Hitler conducted the Holoc...
World War II was a grave event in the twentieth century that affected millions. Two main concepts World War II is remembered for are the concentration camps and the marches. These marches and camps were deadly to many yet powerful to others. However, to most citizens near camps or marches, they were insignificant and often ignored. In The Book Thief, author Markus Zusak introduces marches and camps similar to Dachau to demonstrate how citizens of nearby communities were oblivious to the suffering in those camps during the Holocaust.
Instead of proclaiming her feelings out loud, she suppresses them. The result is a series of recordings, which describes her life, and the things she wishes she could change.