Preview

Simon Wiesenthal The Sunflower

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
418 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Simon Wiesenthal The Sunflower
The Sunflower In the book The Sunflower by Simon Wiesenthal, Wiesenthal speaks to the reader and states, “You, who have just read this sad tragic episode in my life...and ask yourself the crucial question, ‘What would I have done?’” (98). Wiesenthal was task with the decision of whether to forgive Karl, and 22-year-old SS soldier, for his sins committed against the Jews. Wiesenthal, doesn’t forgive Karl, and I agree with this decision. If placed in Wiesenthal’s shoes, I would not, and could not, forgive Karl for his sins, and crimes, against European Jewry because only God can forgive man for sins against God, but also because Karl never seemed to show any true remorse. One of the issues I would have with forgiving Karl and the SS officer
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Albert speer and his involvement in the nazi regime
    • 1462 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Albert speer and his involvement in the nazi regime

    Internationally recognized as the ‘Nazi who said sorry’ collectively, it was from Speer’s remorseful attitude during his trial in 1946 as well as his previous crimes committed in the Nazi movement from which his significance in German and international history is seen.…

    • 1462 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Summary Of Harry James Cargas's Sunflower Symposium
    • 348 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Summary Of Harry James Cargas's Sunflower Symposium

    The author I have chosen is Harry James Cargas, his expertise is an american scholar, author, teacher, and best known for his writing. The title, sunflower Symposium (pg. 124). James claims he is afraid not to forgive because he fears and believes he will not be forgiven. He is in a conflict, but he will not be able to forgive the SS soldier; the only one to forgive is God. Cargas main point is who even has the right to forgive, for example, “Who am I to forgive? I tremble with all of my being when i hold them fully responsible for their actions- but I do. Forgiveness is not something we may depend on others for, we must earn it.” Cargas believes that it is up to God to forgive the ones who do wrong.…

    • 348 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Solomon Radasky During The Holocaust
    • 166 Words
    • 1 Page

    Solomon Radasky During The Holocaust

    Solomon Radasky, a survivor of multiple camps during the Holocaust, including Auschwitz. His autobiography what he and his family went through during the Holocaust. In 1941 his mom and older sister were killed for not giving up their valuables to the soldiers. Later, his father was shot in 1942 when he was spotted smuggling bread through the ghetto wall. Afterwards, Solomon’s other two sisters and two brothers were deported to an extermination camp, he was on his own and never saw them again. For nine weeks he was in a small concentration camp. Although, a soldier stopped him from being hung. The soldier took many people to Auschwitz, including Solomon. If it weren’t for being deported he would have died then. Radasky and other survivors were…

    • 166 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Simon Wiesenthal's The Sunflower
    • 222 Words
    • 1 Page

    Simon Wiesenthal's The Sunflower

    Simon Wiesenthal takes his readers on a course back in time with his writings of The Sunflower. Simon recollects moments when he was subjected to live in Nazi concentration camps during World War II. Karl, a dying SS soldier implores for forgiveness for his crimes against Jews to Simon. Our main character is conflicted by the request and leaves his readers by asking what would one have done being in his position. Proving an answer to this question can be determined by the analysis of Simon’s experiences and findings of experimenters. Philip Zimbardo and Stanley Milgram’s experiments demonstrate the relationship and effects that authority has on subjects. In “The Perils of Obedience”, Milgram applies his analysis of his experiments showing that…

    • 222 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Sunflower By Simon Wiesenthal Quotes
    • 1010 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Sunflower By Simon Wiesenthal Quotes

    Being raised in a Roman Catholic household, I can tell you when it comes to forgiveness I was taught to do the Christian thing. As hard is it might be, I should find it in my heart to forgive those who have hurt me, whether they ask for forgiveness or not. What I had never pondered is the chance that someone might ask me forgiveness for something wrong they have done to someone else. Do I have the right to put them at ease or offer forgiveness? In the book The Sunflower, Simon Wiesenthal, a man who had watched countless of innocent Jews like himself be murdered because of sheer hate, shares his unique story. One that has made me think about the way I view, and use forgiveness.…

    • 1010 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Oskar Schindler: A Hero Of The Holocaust
    • 742 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Oskar Schindler: A Hero Of The Holocaust

    “Schindler our protector, he was the only one who could protect us.” is a quote by Sol Urbach, a refugee of Oskar Schindler. Oskar Schindler was a Holocaust rescuer who saved over 1,200 prisoners during World War II. He rescued many of these prisoners by employing them in his factory as an excuse for their release. Oskar’s personality developed when he realized how awfully Jews were being treated during the war, so he decided to use his wealth to save the countless lives of others. Schindler used his cleverness, generosity, and social status to keep his Jews from the brutal conditions they might have had to face by Nazi party. Oskar may not have had a perfect early or adult life, but he is an outgoing hero of the Holocaust.…

    • 742 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Sunflower By Simon Wiesenthal Analysis
    • 1466 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The Sunflower By Simon Wiesenthal Analysis

    In The Sunflower, Simon Wiesenthal documents his experiences in a Nazi Death Camp. Sent (along with other prisoners) to clean medical waste in a hospital converted for the express usage of injured German Soldiers. On the way, "Our column suddenly came to a halt at a crossroads. I could see nothing that might be holding us up but I noticed on the left of the street there was a military cemetery . . . and on each grave there was planted a sunflower . . . I stared spellbound . . . Suddenly I envied the dead soldiers. Each had a sunflower to connect him with the living world, and butterflies to visit his grave. For me there would be no sunflower. I would be buried in a mass grave, where corpses would be piled on top of me. No sunflower would ever bring light into my darkness, and…

    • 1466 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Did Franz Stangl Deserve His Punishment
    • 748 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Did Franz Stangl Deserve His Punishment

    Franz Stangl had gone to the institution of Scloss Hartheim where he first began to kill people. Franz had no problem killing humans; he did not think of them as humans at all. In an interview with, Gitta Sereny, he had been asked if he thought of the people as humans. “So you didn’t feel they were human beings?” “Cargo,” he had answered. “They were cargo.” In his own mind he had felt like he did nothing wrong because he thought he was getting rid of cargo. “It had started the day I first saw the Totenhlager in Treblinka. Writh had said ‘What shall we do with this garbage’ I think unconsciously that started of me thinking as them as cargo.” Although he had thought that they were cargo and garbage, he had no reason for killing them except. “They were so weak- they allowed everything to happen - to be done to them. They were people with whom there was no common ground, no possibility of communication- that is how contempt is born. I could never understand how they could just give in as they did.” Franz was simply stating an incorrect fact saying that the Jewish people did not try to fight back and had made it easy for them to be killed. He was very wrong about this since if anyone had tried to stand up or fight back, they would have been killed immediately. He was a man who had mistreated Jewish people thinking of them as cargo and took pleasure in killing…

    • 748 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Oskar Schindler Quotes
    • 1463 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Oskar Schindler Quotes

    Oskar Schindler stated, “I hated the brutality, the sadism, and the insanity of Nazism. I just couldn't stand by and see people destroyed. I did what I could, what I had to do, what my conscience told me I must do. That's all there is to it. Really, nothing more” (AZ Quotes 1). During World War II, Oskar Schindler stood up to the Nazi party in Krakow, Poland by using false labor records and pleading with Nazi leaders, so they would not send his Jewish factory workers to concentration camps. Oskar Schindler’s bravery to stand up to the Nazi’s during World War II saved 1,200 innocent Jewish people’s lives from the horrors of the Holocaust.…

    • 1463 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Simon Wiesenthal Thesis
    • 583 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Simon Wiesenthal Thesis

    In SIMON WIESENTHAL: 1908 - 2005; He would never let us forget the St. Petersburg Times mentions, "When we come to the other world,'' Mr. Wiesenthal said he responded, "and meet the millions of Jews who died in the camps, and they ask us, "What have you done?' there will be many answers. "You will tell them, "I became a jeweler.' "Another will say, "I smuggled coffee and American cigarettes.' "Another will say, "I built houses.' "But I will say, "I didn't forget you.' '' (times). Therefore, Wiesenthal is mentioning in he’s phrase that dead needed justice and a voice to go after those who have caused the pain, suffering, and inhumanity things to the millions of innocent lives taken in vein in which justice will one day be served to…

    • 583 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Robert Cole
    • 1005 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Robert Cole

    Berger, Rebecca Goldstein, Rodger Kamenetz, and Arthur Hertzberg are all against forgiving Karl, their reasoning’s behind non-forgiveness vary. Alan Berger provides various reasons. First, he questions the repentance of Karl and ponders on if it’s genuine or not. He provides a valid reason to not forgive: the beliefs of Judaism followers. Additionally, he also feels Karl perpetuated the Nazi stereotype and expected to cleanse his own soul at the expense of a Jew. Robert Coles, however, believes that Simon does not have to forgive, but he must be prayed for. He agrees with Berger’s idea that Karl spoke in the name of all Jews, not just Simon (page 137). Rodger Kamenetz is on the same page in that he believes Karl did not address Simon as a person, rather a Jew thus removing any individualism left in Simon. Rebecca Goldstein also feels that Karl does not have the right to die in peace because he does not provide each Jew with the individualism deserved. She provides a valid comparison of the Nazi’s thinking Jews are like water. She states,…

    • 1005 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Sunflower Simon Wiesenthal Analysis
    • 981 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Sunflower Simon Wiesenthal Analysis

    The Sunflower, by Simon Wiesenthal, was an intriguing and thought –provoking novel that raised many questions on the theological and moral concept of forgiveness. Furthermore, it delved into the matter of whether an individual has the right to forgive in the name of others, or whether forgiveness of the perpetrator was even deserved in the first place. The narrative is told from the first person point of view of Simon Wiesenthal, a young man in his 30s, imprisoned in a work camp. He tells his story of a dying Nazi’s plea for forgiveness and his own subsequent actions. After we hear his story, we can read the opinions of many individuals that tell what they would have done in Simon’s place, and add their own insights into the discussion. Before we delve into the specifics of what I would have done in Simon’s place, and which contributor I can relate to most, I would like to discuss the concept of forgiveness, and what it means to me.…

    • 981 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Simon Wiesenthal Analysis
    • 1055 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Simon Wiesenthal Analysis

    Simon Wiesenthal takes his readers on a course back in time with his writings of The Sunflower. Simon recollects moments when he was subjected to live in Nazi concentration camps during World War II. Karl, a dying SS soldier implores for forgiveness for his crimes against Jews of Simon. Our main character is conflicted by the request and leaves his readers by asking what would one have done being in his position. Providing an answer to this question can be determined by the analysis of Simon’s experiences and findings of experimenters. Philip Zimbardo and Stanley Milgram’s experiments demonstrate the relationship and effects that authority has on subjects. In “The Perils of Obedience”, Milgram applies his analysis of his experiments showing…

    • 1055 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Torture In Elie Wiesel's Night
    • 513 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Torture In Elie Wiesel's Night

    At a time when one should be energetic, lively, and healthy, Wiesel became exhausted to the point he would compare himself to a “withered tree”. However, Wiesel was not the only one like this. Witnessing everyone else lose hope, as they became more exhausted with each day passing, made it difficult for him to not follow suit. In other words, a loss of faith in humanity and himself, led to his loss of innocence. In addition to his loss of faith in humanity and himself, he also lost faith in God. Irving Halperin, an English and creative writer, as well as, professor at San Francisco State University, wrote, “'Why should I bless His name?' This outcry is the sign of, as François Mauriac says in his foreword to the book, 'the death of God in the soul of a child who suddenly discovers absolute evil.' And this breakdown of religious faith calls forth Eliezer's resolve 'never to forget'” (Halperin 32). Halperin argues that due to his loss of faith in God, Wiesel lost his innocence. During his time in the concentration camps, Wiesel witnessed people praying to God, time and time again. However, God did not answer them; children, women, and men continued to die as each day…

    • 513 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Forgiveness In The Sunflower By Herbert Marcuse
    • 600 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Forgiveness In The Sunflower By Herbert Marcuse

    Forgiveness is a major theme that is developed throughout The Sunflower, Herbert Marcuse being a philosopher told what he would do if asked to forgive. Born 19 July 1898, in Berlin, Germany, he became an American political philosopher. Marcuse went to the University of Freiburg and got a doctoral degree in German literature when he was 24. He became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1940 and served as an intelligence analyst for the U.S. Office of Strategic Services for three years. He taught at Columbia, Harvard, Brandeis and the University of California from 1951 to 1976. Marcuse was a professor of philosophy until he died in 1979. His most influential work is the One-dimensional Man: Studies in the Ideology of Advanced Industrial Society (Wolin). “Marcus argued that the modern ‘affluent’ society represses even those who are successful within it, while maintaining their complacency through the ersatz satisfactions of consumer culture” (Wolin). This was a very influential book…

    • 600 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics