Jozefow essays

Jozefow essays There is no doubt that during Hitlers reign in Germany, someone killed Jews. Someone ordered the killings, someone organized the killings and someone killed them. Is there a difference in these someones? For many years there has been controversy surrounding the extermination of the Jews during the Nazi era. People were tried and convicted for their involvement: some of them denied their contribution, others appeared neutral, and still others were proud of their involvement. These killers came from numerous nationalities, mixed political backgrounds, varied social/economic statuses, and age range. In the article ONE DAY IN JOZEFOW, Initiation to mass murder, the author, Christopher R. Browning, gives his reader an intriguing perspective into the mindset of men who were actually given a choice of whether or not to kill the Jews. Because his perspective only focuses on one specific event, his conclusions are, for the most part, not completely convincing. It is reasonable to be lieve that there was a stronger underlying force which caused otherwise normal people to become killers during the Nazi era, but Brownings use of minimal sources, skewed numbers and somewhat vague statements, causes the reader to feel they have been subjected to a micro-study with macro conclusions. Brownings article provides insight into a specific occasion in Jozefow, Poland, where Jews were murdered at point blank range by ordinary policemen. Of these policemen, some were drafted and some volunteered for one reason or another. This group, called Reserve Police Battalion 101, consisted of men around the age of 39 with only about 25 per cent of them belonging to the Nazi Party. (Browning, 304) After studying the court records of interrogations and trials of certain members of this police battalion, Browning discovered that these men were given a chance to reject the task of killing the Jews, yet the majority of t...

Bridges

Bridges Bridges Bridges By Maeve Maddox The bridge is one of the most basic human concepts. A tiny child playing with sticks and puddles knows to build a bridge. Not surprisingly, the word bridge, as both noun and verb, has found its way into numerous idioms and expressions. A bridge is a structure forming or carrying a road over a river, ravine, or the like in order to provide a passage between two points. The verb bridge is transitive. Literally, one bridges rivers and gaps: His first contract was to bridge the Monongahela River with an 8-span, 1500-foot-long bridge. The first effort to bridge the gap [between Patna and Sonepur] was Rajendra Setu in 1959. Figuratively, one bridges figurative gaps: 15 Ways to Bridge the Gap Between IT and Business Can Academics Bridge the Gap Between the Academy and the Mainstream Reading Public? Because bridges represent firm connections and safe passage, the noun bridge is used to denote anything that brings people of differing ideas and cultures together in a positive manner: Turkish language a bridge to understanding Service dogs provide a bridge for autistic children to connect with the world†¦ The noun bridge is also used to denote a transition or a cyber connection: With the electronic forms server, our paperless e-forms solution creates a bridge between forms and an ECM/EDM system, A Network Bridge is a hardware or a software [program] that connects two or more networks – maybe one a wired one and the other a wireless one – so that they can communicate with each other. An expression commonly heard in planning sessions is â€Å"We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.† The meaning is that future problems must be dealt with as they arise. Sometimes it’s wise advice, but sometimes it’s an excuse for not planning for consequences. Here are two more bridge idioms: water under the bridge: something that has happened and cannot be changed. For example, these headlines: Cold War no longer water under the bridge as ships sail to Syria Toledo May Say That Its Water Under the Bridge, but Its Still Payback Time like painting the Forth Bridge: an endless task. The Forth Bridge, a cantilever railway bridge across the Firth of Forth in Scotland, is 8,296 feet long. The saying arose from the idea that by the time maintenance workers starting at one end of the bridge had finished painting it, the bridge would need repainting from the beginning. Here’s a recent use of the idiom: Keeping one of Perthshire’s most spectacular mountains in top condition is like â€Å"painting the Forth Bridge†, the expert in charge of its care has said. The most recent painting of the Forth Bridge took 400 men ten years to complete. This time they applied a triple layer of glass flake epoxy paint that is expected to last until about 2036. The card game called Bridge has nothing to do with the kind that spans water. The game is thought to have originated in the Near East. The game’s name of Bridge may be an alteration of a Turkish word called out during play. This illustration in the OED shows the use of a strange word used by English-speaking bridge players in the 19th century: The one declaring may, instead of declaring trumps, say ‘Biritch’, which means that the hands shall be played without trumps. J. Collinson Biritch 2  Ã‚  (1886). Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:45 Synonyms for â€Å"Food†60 Synonyms for â€Å"Trip†English Grammar 101: Prepositions

Olaudah Equiano Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Olaudah Equiano - Essay Example He was the youngest one in the family, which also had five brothers and another sister. At the age of eleven, he was kidnapped along with his sister by the slaveholders. From there, he was a sent to the islands of Barbados, located in the West Indies. After that, he was transferred to Virginia (Equiano, 39). He was a bought by a member of the Royal Navy called as Michael Pascal. After serving him, he ended up being given to a merchant named as Robert King. After working some years for him, he gained his independence. Equiano settled in London and became a vocal voice against the anti-slavery movement. By the year 1783, he was involved in the transfer of information to a lot of the anti-slavery campaigners. Some of his accounts of the slavery paint a picture of the trials and tribulations faced by the slaves. His book was published in the year 1789 and went through a large number of editions. It was a sensational event, as it covered a large fact base regarding the slave trade. Equian o has mentioned a number of events regarding the slave trade, with a description of the cruelties being suffered by them. It has been mentioned by him, that the slaves suffered from a host of tortures including the â€Å"iron muzzle†. His work has helped in explaining the atrocities committed by the slave owners. This has been one of the reference points for the history of slavery and the eventual abolition. ANALYSIS There has been a recent controversy about the origin of the author. He was one of the most accomplished English speaking writers of the age, coming from an African origin. There has been an emergence of some recent information from sources: that the birth records and other details of Olaudah Equiano  had discrepancies in them. One of the factors that were noticed as a part of the records, are the claims about the baptization at the Saint Margaret’s Church and the Arctic expedition. Some of the documents also cast a doubt on the veracity of the claims abo ut his birth. It is being researched that the place of birth was not current day Nigeria, but South Carolina. In an event of these factors being true, they cast a reasonable doubt on the genuine nature of the thesis; regarding the slave trade. If this has been a case of the wrong identity being used, it could cast a number of aspersions on the image of Olaudah Equiano. Some of the historical records have suggested the date of birth as 1747 and not the year 1745. Some of the authors have described this behaviour to be of a man who is â€Å"self made† (Caretta, 277). This word has a lot of dichotomy in the meaning, with the achievement of success; as well as the realization of a childhood dream. This would have a significant impact on the description of the times and the events being expressed. His expression of the events is a reaction to his wanton need for achieving the due recognition and success. The extrapolation of the events is a way of defining his identity, as perceiv ed by himself. CONCLUSION In light of the recent discoveries, it can be assumed that Olaudah Equiano may have made an attempt to reclaim the African identity, rather than having lived one. So, much of the middle passage in the slave ship may not seem