Doris L. Bergen's Adaptive Writing Styles
Bergen’s Adaptive Writing Styles Doris L. Bergen is an extremely knowledgeable Professor of Holocaust studies and an astute author who focuses on many different aspects of the Holocaust and World War II. She has proven to be multi-faceted in her literature. Bergen 's ability to reach a wide range of readers is evident, when looking at two of her different pieces of written work, "War and Genocide" and "German Military Chaplains in WWII and the Dilemmas of Legitimacy." She skillfully attracts the attention of her targeted audience and delivers her message in an easily comprehensible manner.
The Holocaust and WWII are two major events in world history that Bergen explores in both her book and essay. "War and Genocide" provides a comprehensive …show more content…
Bergen understands that readers with little or no knowledge about the Holocaust may lose interest if the content the book is “over their heads” or above their level of understanding. That is why she begins her book with this simple analogy, "In order for a house to burn down, three things are required. The timber must be dry and combustible, there needs to be a spark that ignites it, and external conditions have to be favorable-not too damp, perhaps some wind." (War and Genocide” 1) She chose to include numerous headings, subtitles, photographs (with captions), and footnotes in the book, unlike the essay, which has none of these. Instead, “German Military Chaplains” contains an extensive compilation of references for each chapter. In this piece of work, Bergen chose to grasp her colleague 's attention in a different manner. Knowing beforehand that her readers might simply skim the first paragraph, before deciding it was worth their time to read, she cleverly inserted a few eye-catching words and phrases, such as “sexually transmitted diseases,” “So you’re a pastor?,” and “We don’t need one of them” (“German Military Chaplains” 1) within the first four
The Holocaust and WWII are two major events in world history that Bergen explores in both her book and essay. "War and Genocide" provides a comprehensive …show more content…
Bergen understands that readers with little or no knowledge about the Holocaust may lose interest if the content the book is “over their heads” or above their level of understanding. That is why she begins her book with this simple analogy, "In order for a house to burn down, three things are required. The timber must be dry and combustible, there needs to be a spark that ignites it, and external conditions have to be favorable-not too damp, perhaps some wind." (War and Genocide” 1) She chose to include numerous headings, subtitles, photographs (with captions), and footnotes in the book, unlike the essay, which has none of these. Instead, “German Military Chaplains” contains an extensive compilation of references for each chapter. In this piece of work, Bergen chose to grasp her colleague 's attention in a different manner. Knowing beforehand that her readers might simply skim the first paragraph, before deciding it was worth their time to read, she cleverly inserted a few eye-catching words and phrases, such as “sexually transmitted diseases,” “So you’re a pastor?,” and “We don’t need one of them” (“German Military Chaplains” 1) within the first four