COM 2416-01 The Holocaust
Purpose: To understand the significance of Kristallnacht in Holocaust history; and to assess both knowledge of content and critical thinking and reflection about this event.
Check before you submit. Get Turnitin Score Report in 15 Minutes.
Don't risk the 'Red' score. Get the exact same Turnitin report your professor uses. Join 50,000+ students who submitted their essays with confidence this semester.
Mechanical Directions: Put your name at the top of this page. Save this file in the following format: WQ6 your last name. Thus, my file would be as follows: WQ6 Zimmerman
Do not justify your text (it makes it very difficult to insert comments); leave all text left justified.
On this WebQuest, I will deduct MORE points for mechanical errors (misspelled words, typos, grammatical errors), should there be evidence that you have failed either to proof read your work or to use spell check.
Use black font for your answers so that I can easily distinguish your work from my questions. Be sure the numbering system remains true—1a., 1b., etc. Each answer must follow the question it answers.
Content Directions:
Answer the following questions in your own words. Use the websites given in the questions to help you write your answers. New directive: If you use other websites as information sources, be sure to include the url’s. Start with the websites provided. More websites are listed at the end of this assignment.
Explore the various pages on any specific website. Please let me know immediately if any of the links do not work. Feel free to explore other websites, as you deem appropriate. If you cite information from a website not listed, include the url of the cited information.
Avoid copying and pasting a lot of information from the Internet. I want to read answers in your own words, as an example of your individual learning (as opposed to what you think the instructor wants). Brief answers are best.
I always appreciate students who express what is of interest to them, why the material has captured their attention, and any additional questions they may have about the information.
When you have completed the assignment, email to the instructor, as an attached Microsoft Word file by midnight, Friday, October 26, 2018. Do not skip class to finish this paper. If you cannot complete it by midnight, send me an email request for an extension.
Note: “Shoah” is the Hebrew word for “Holocaust”; the two words, “Holocaust” and “Shoah” are used interchangeably in this assignment and throughout the semester.
- (10 points) Scholars agree that Kristallnacht marked the beginning of the end for Jews living in Nazi Germany and Austria. Watch this 10 minute video from Facing History and Ourselves.
https://www.facinghistory.org/resource-library/video/kristallnacht-november-1938-pogroms- What happened on Kristallnacht?,
- Why was Kristallnacht a turning point in Holocaust history? For the Jews? For Nazi Germany?,
- (10 points) What is the meaning of the word “pogrom?” How was Kristallnacht an example of a pogrom?
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/pogroms - (10 points) Kurt Messerschmidt, Kristallnacht survivor, describes the aftermath and fear after the Kristallnacht Pogrom – the organized pogrom against Jews in Nazi Germany and Austria that occurred on November 9–10, 1938.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8b7QgCMrsLI- What is the etymology of the word “Holocaust” as explained by Mr. Messerschmidt?
- As a teacher in an orphanage, describe what happened to the children in the orphanage after Kristallnacht, according to Mr. Messerschmidt.
- (20 points) Read the description of Kristallnacht in the online Holocaust Encyclopedia on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum website. After reading the article, answer the following questions in your own words; do not copy and paste a lot of information. https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/kristallnacht
- What is the relationship of the assassination of Ernst vom Rath to Kristallnacht?
- Where did Kristallnacht take place?
- Describe the American press coverage of Kristallnacht. What were some of the responses of the American people, including the president, to this pogrom? How did the U.S. immigration policy change as a result of Kristallnacht?
- What was “Aryanization?”
- (10 points) Browse to https://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/exhibitions/kristallnacht/video.asp
Choose one survivor’s video. Identify the survivor and describe what happened to the survivor before, during, and after Kristallnacht. What are your thoughts after listening to the survivor’s story and learning this part of his/her history?
- (10 points) Read the section, “From Kristallnacht to the Final Solution” (scroll down to find it).
https://www.britannica.com/event/Holocaust#ref716502
Who had to pay for the damage? How did these provisions come into play? What was the aftermath of Kristallnacht in terms of further restrictions on the Jews? - (10 points) This reflection question is an opportunity for you to demonstrate critical thinking and learning. Reflect on your learning from this WebQuest. In a paragraph or two, explore the causes of pogroms. Include ideas as to how pogroms can be prevented, even though they are sometimes state-sponsored and encouraged?
- (10 points) At the Province Center program on Nov. 2, one of the guest speakers will be AnneMarie Yellin, who was a nine-year-old girl living in Chemnitz, Germany on Kristallnacht. The pogrom effectively ended her childhood. List three questions you have about Kristallnacht and/or about Mrs. Yellin’s experiences about which you would like to learn more or gain greater clarity. Be prepared to ask her at least one of your questions.
- (10 points) Similar to the tributes written in class to the victims of the Armenian Genocide, write a tribute or commemoration of Kristallnacht in about three paragraphs. I do not wish to stifle creativity; feel free to write more. Or, a poem or personal reflection. I am looking for evidence that students understand the enormity of this event. Write the essay as if you were going to read it to Mrs. Yellin or another survivor of Kristallnacht.
- (No points, but points deducted for not answering authentically) Feedback:
- Which question did the most to further your understanding of pogroms in general and specifically, Kristallnacht?
- Which question would you delete? Why?
- What would you add to improve this assignment?
Additional Kristallnacht websites:
Summary of Kristallnacht:
http://motlc.wiesenthal.com/site/pp.asp?c=gvKVLcMVIuG&b=394679
Fact sheet on Kristallnacht:
http://motlc.wiesenthal.com/site/pp.asp?c=gvKVLcMVIuG&b=394825
