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Holocaust Literature

The Holocaust through the lens of literature and film.

  • Course Length: 18 weeks
  • Course Type: Elective
  • Category:
    • English
    • Humanities
    • Literature
    • High School

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Shmoop's Holocaust Literature course has been granted a-g certification, which means it has met the rigorous iNACOL Standards for Quality Online Courses and will now be honored as part of the requirements for admission into the University of California system.

The Holocaust. It's hard to imagine so much suffering, and it's even harder to imagine why it happened. Maybe that's why writers and filmmakers have been fascinated by it ever since it went down. What went so horribly wrong in Germany in the 1930s? What was it like for the people who were there? And is there anything we can learn from it?

There are lots of ways to try to answer these questions, and this course will do it through books and films, zeroing in on what the Holocaust meant for the people who lived through it. In this standards-aligned course, packed with nonfiction, memoir, literature, primary and secondary sources, and visuals, we'll look at everything from poetry to survivor testimonies to Hollywood blockbusters, all from a personal perspective.

It's admittedly a heavy course, but there are a huge variety of activities, readings, and topics that appeal to any Shmooper. That being said, its chief goal is to start to answer the Big Questions. In this semester-long course, we'll not only learn what happened, but why and how—and speaking of hows, how the Holocaust is discussed, seen, and depicted today. 

Unit Breakdown

1 Holocaust Literature - A Very Brief History of the Holocaust

The Holocaust conjures up a boatload of feelings and images, and in this unit, we're going to ground those feelings and images in concrete information and facts about this dreadful time in history. Before we dive into the literature and film of the Holocaust, we'll take a look at the context surrounding it—which, of course, will help you out down the road.

2 Holocaust Literature - Survivor Memoirs

In this unit, we'll be looking at survivor memoirs: accounts of the Holocaust written by people who lived in the camps. We'll be tackling Night, Survival in Auschwitz, Maus, and The Sunflower. (Full disclosure: Maus wasn't written by a survivor, but the author based it on conversations he had with his [very cranky] father, who did live through the Holocaust.)

3 Holocaust Literature - Holocaust Fiction

This unit is all about historical fiction, and one of the main questions we'll ask is whether there should even be such a thing as Holocaust fiction. To help us answer this question, we're going to tackle four very different novels about the Holocaust: Cynthia Ozick's The Shawl, Bernhard Schlink's The Reader, Jane Yolen's Briar Rose, and Jonathan Safran Foer's Everything Is Illuminated.

4 Holocaust Literature - Holocaust Film

Directors and screenwriters are just as interested as fiction writers in the stories—both heroic and tragic—of the Holocaust. In this unit, we're going to watch (and analyze, duh) three movies about the Holocaust: Everything Is Illuminated, Schindler's List, and The Boy in the Striped Pajamas.


Sample Lesson - Introduction

Lesson 2.02: Onwards into the Night

Eliezer and his father have arrived at Auschwitz, he's been separated from his mother and sisters, and his faith in God—which was incredibly important to him in Sighet—is pretty much in shambles.

And we're just getting warmed up.

Life in the camp is only going to get worse as Eliezer watches the camp break his father's spirit and witnesses horrors that were unimaginable to him before his deportation.

While you read, keep your eye out for some of the historical details that you researched in past lessons. You're an expert on Auschwitz, but Night will add to your knowledge—not only by giving you more detail but also by letting you see the camp through Eliezer's eyes. One of the great things about literature is that it can help us understand what history meant to the people living it; we can't experience it ourselves, but we can get an inkling of understanding about what it means.

Our question to you, then, is what did the Holocaust mean for Eliezer and his family?

Sample Lesson - Reading

Reading 2.2.02: Night, Chapters 4-6

In the next three chapters of Night, you'll get a sneak peek at life in Auschwitz firsthand. Before you get started, don't forget to think about the themes you looked at yesterday—religion, family, and identity. As you read, take notes and mark passages that relate to that theme.

After you've finished, head on over to Shmoop's summaries for Chapters 4 – 6, just to make sure we're all on the same page.

We don't want anyone getting lost in the Night.

Sample Lesson - Activity

Activity 2.02a: Reading Check, Chapters 4-6

Once you're done reading, answer these questions (thereby demonstrating your genius).

  1. Chapter 4

    1. Who is their Kapo?

    2. How does Eliezer get to keep his gold tooth longer?

    3. What was the French girl able to conceal?

    4. Who eventually takes Eliezer's gold tooth?

    5. What is the worst violence or death that Eliezer witnesses?

  2. Chapter 5

    1. What holiday do the Jews get together to celebrate?

    2. How do the prisoners make sure they pass selection?

    3. Name the person who does not pass the inspection.

    4. What does Eliezer "inherit"?

    5. What injury does Eliezer sustain?

  3. Chapter 6

    1. What happens to Eliezer's friend Zalman during the march?

    2. What, according to the book, does it mean to sleep?

    3. Describe what happened between Rabbi Eliahu and his son.

    4. What does Eliezer pray for?

    5. What happened to Juliek and his violin?

Comprehension Check Rubric - 10 Points

Fully CorrectPartially Correct
Answer

Written answers are correct and fully formulated.

(10)

Written answers are partially correct or only partially formulated.

(5)

Sample Lesson - Activity

Activity 2.02b: Brainstorming Night

You're in the midst of gaining boatloads of material to work with when we come back to the three main themes we're focusing on in this unit: family, religion, and identity. Now it's time for another brainstorming session.

Feel free to add on other notes too: important passages, character notes, or even questions you'd like to think more about—we've modeled this below.

Oh, and don't feel trapped in Chapters 4–6. If you need to use stuff from the first part of the novel—which might be useful since we're asking you about how Eliezer's attitude toward family, religion, and identity is changing—go right ahead.

Don't forget that Shmoop has theme pages for inspiration:

Using the same theme from our last lesson, here are a few more Shmoop-tastic examples to show you what you should be doing:

  • Theme: Religion
    • Quote: "For the first time, I felt anger rising within me. Why should I sanctify His name? The Almighty, the eternal and terrible Master of the Universe, chose to be silent. What was there to thank Him for?" (33)
    • Explanation: Character note: Religion is a huge part of Eliezer's identity and life. We see this changing within him from very early on in this story.
    • Question: Will Eliezer completely lose his faith? Will he ever be able to get it back? If so, will it play the same role in his life that it did before the war?

Participation Only Rubric - 10 Points

OutstandingNeeds Improvement
Quality of Participation

Student did the assignment as instructed. 

(10)

Student only did part of the activity or assignment.

(5)