In Modernity and the Holocaust (1989) Bauman identifies the role modernity played in bringing about the holocaust. He argued that one of the conditions that impacted the occurrence of the Holocaust was the advancement in technology during the Enlightenment period. Which contributed greatly to the destruction of innocent people, thus mass extermination, as weapons were manufactured aimed at ‘fast and efficient killing, scientifically designed and administered genocide’( p. 86).
Bauman refused to accept the reduction of the Holocaust to simply an episode in Jewish history or to the possibility that it cannot be repeated in the West. Due to the constant change of modern civilisation, ‘we can only suspect that the conditions that once before gave birth to the holocaust have not been radically transformed’, p.86-handout.
According to Bauman, modern Holocaust occurs when many factors, which should be kept apart, happens at the same time. Amongst the factors identified as elements required for a genocide as big as the Holocaust are radical modern anti-Semitism, transformation of anti-Semitism into state policy, a state of emergence (which serves the purpose of distracting the population from the activities of the bureaucracy) and the passive non-interference of the population as a whole.
The exhibition began with the portrayal of Jewish people as belonging to a happy community, after they migrated from various parts of Europe. Gilbert (2001) described the resentment of Jews by Christians as ‘throughout the middle ages and beyond’ p.20. This shows the problems of the Jews as ongoing process and they have become accustomed to this lifestyle. He furthermore explained the prejudice experienced by the Jews after the First World War, for instance in Russia 85,000 Jews were killed. Despite the efforts of self defence by the Jews, they could not do much as their attackers ‘were armed with weapons, and with a vicious hatred’, p.20. In Forgotten Voices by Smith (2005) stories are told by survivors detailing the terrifying event of the Holocaust. It was reported that the Polish underground helped the Jews but ‘the only arms they gave were 1914 old rifles, too rusty to use’, p. 135. During the exhibition it was possible to see the relevancy of Bauman’s argument that modernity is indeed the true cause of the Holocaust as it was reported that ‘for the first time in history, industrial methods were used for mass extermination of a whole people’. The Holocaust took the lives of 6 million people, during this period; millions of people were enslaved and murdered.
The Essay on Jewish Race Jews People Holocaust
The Holocaust remains, and will continue to remain as one of the most horrific things that has happened to a group of people. The absolute inhumanity of the Holocaust puzzles people even today. Contemporary people wonder just how it happened, how could a people be systematically killed, tortured, murdered. The answer will probably never be found, but future generations can avoid something like the ...
Hitler was announced the leader of the Nazi Party in 1920, soon after they published their twenty-five point Official Programme. According to Gilbert (2001) although they did not have many supporters, with just sixty members, the Nazi Party had all ‘the determination of fanatism’, (p. 30).
Point four of the programme states that ‘None but members of the Nation may be citizens of the State, None but those of German blood……….No Jews, therefore may be a member of the Nation’, p.30. This set out the agenda of the Nazi Party’s as it reflects their personal hatred of the Jews, which was later reinforced by the Nuremberg Laws of 1935. P.30
‘Anti- Semites of the World, Unite! People of Europe, free yourself!
The Nazi’s also demanded in 1920 that all Jews who came to Germany after 1914 should be forced to leave. In 1938 this was legalised and the overnight mass expulsion of 18,000 German Jews demonstrated the seriousness of the situation. It could therefore be argued that modernity did not cause the Holocaust, that it came about as a last resort as many attempt had been made to rid the Jews. According to Bauman ‘there is no moral-ethical power higher than the state’, p.86-handout, so therefore the authority resorted to what Bauman called a ‘modern genocide’, p 91, as they had a purpose of achieving a perfect society. He furthermore compared individuals in a modern state to prisoners in Auschwitz as they have the commonalty of being controlled by a higher authority.
The Essay on Changes in the Life of Jews in Nazi Germany
The Nazis anathematize the Jews. From a long time ago the Jews were not liked by the people of Europe and in the reign of the Nazis this became much worse. The Nazis officials were given strict orders to exterminate as many Jews as possible. The Nazis wanted to remove the whole of Jewish community. They wanted to eradicate every single Jew in the whole world. The Jews had to face a really hard ...
Bauman’s theory that the Holocaust is the result of modernity can be considered as being too simplistic because although technology impacted the ability of mass killing, it cannot be argued that it created the hatred towards the Jews.
Cheyette and Marcus (1998) concluded that the new dangers which arose for the Jews in the beginning of the late nineteenth century were not due to modernity but as a result of ‘mass franchise’, (p.184).
This assumption arose as it was considered that Jew hatred re-emerged as a powerful political presence at the same moment as manhood suffrage, p 179. They furthermore referred to Marx and Weber who consider modern society to be characterised by the levelling of social differences.
It could however be argued that in comparison to slavery, the Holocaust is different due to the intended intentions of the supreme race towards the inferior race. The ‘master race’ (Herrenvolk) in Germany consisted of the Germans and their neighbours in Northern Europe. The Exhibition showed that there was a hierarchy system practice in Germany and at the very bottom were the Jews, so therefore the crime of genocide was deliberately aimed at wiping out the whole Jewish population. ‘Without a solution to the Jewish question there is no solution for mankind’, Julius Streicher, editor of Nazi newspaper Der Sturmer, C.1933- Exhibition. Bauman himself recognises the agenda of the German leaders ‘their killing was not the work of destruction but creation’, P.92- handout. Whereas the system during slavery had no such intention, instead people were oppressed and exploited, as the slavers benefited from the labour of the slaves. However the Holocaust in Germany has similarities to the ethnic cleansing of Rwanda in 1994, as masses of Tutsi people were brutally killed with machetes and clubs in a short space of time. Just as in Germany, the government tried to hide the truth from authorities abroad.
The Essay on Anti Federalist Constitution Government National
Most Americans were very suspicious of government, but the Anti-Federalist was really mistrustful of the government in general and strong national government. This mistrust was the basis of their opposition to the constitution. They feared it had created a government the people could not control. Many distinguished Americans were Anti-Federalists. Leaders included George Mason and Elbridge Gerry. ...
They created the illusion that the mass killing was as a result of war, with the Hutus and the Tutsis killing one another. In the exhibition of Crime against Humanity, it showed the devastating effect of evil committed by people in power. It could be argued that the Holocaust was a result of anti-Semitism. However as there has been many anti-Semites in the past, one might reject this having a significant impact on the extent in which the Holocaust occurred, especially as the level of anti-Semitism in Germany is smaller in comparison to that of France. So therefore it cannot be argued to a great degree that anti-Semitism is the causation of the Holocaust. During the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, the German government removed all anti-Semitic signs and all acts of violence were forced to stop, temporally. This serves the purpose of showing an integrated community to the outside world and they succeeded as according to Sir Eric Phipps, (British Ambassador in Berlin), ‘many foreign visitors left …impressed by the supposed achievement of the Third Reich’ , (Exhibition).
It was further reported that 16 Jewish athletes won medals and most were murdered by the Nazi’s few years later.
Bauman therefore referred to the summary of Sarah Gordon as she concluded that systematic extermination could only have be achieved by ‘extremely powerful government’ and could have only been made possible under the disguise of ‘wartime conditions’, p.94- handout. This is because the government would have needed the cooperation of many organisations, e.g. from the military and bureaucracy, otherwise a revolt might occur.
According to Bauman, modernity involves a move from the tradition of uncertainties as it involves the ability of man to control nature. Bauman also focuses on the hierarchical bureaucracy system which existed within the German empire and the rules and regulations that were used in controlling its people.
