History 317:  Final Examination Study Questions

December 13, 2005

Part I:  Essay (worth 33%)   You will choose between two of the following questions:

1.What would make the men of Police Reserve Battalion 101 shoot unarmed civilians?  Are these "ordinary men"?

2.How did individuals survive the world of the concentration camps?  What social, psychological, and other factors helped individuals survive under such extreme conditions?

3.How did the decision for the Holocaust come into being?  Did Hitler emerge from World War I with a clear plan to exterminate physically the Jews of Europe, or was it a "twisted road" to Auschwitz?  What were the consequences of this campaign of mass murder, both for its victims and for the world?  Write an essay on the origins of the Holocaust.  Be specific in relating the relative importance of the various factors that went into the creation of the "Final Solution."  Consider other arguments when supporting your thesis.

  Part II:  Essay (worth 33%):  You will choose between two of the following questions:

4.Was the Holocaust unique?  By what measure can it be considered unique?  Consider other instances of genocide in history and write an essay detailing the case for or against the uniqueness of the Holocaust (defined as the mass murder of Jews by the Nazi regime during World War II).

5.What is the legacy of the Holocaust for the western world?  Does it differ from country to country?  Is the meaning of the Holocaust uniform in any particular group?  Write an essay on the social and cultural meaning of the Holocaust.

6.Is the writing of poetry after Auschwitz barbaric, as Theodor Adorno would have it?  Given the gulf between our generation and that of the survivors, what is the best method of representation?  Write an essay on the discursive challenges of representing the Holocaust.

7.How can the practice of genocide be prevented?  Write an essay on the possibilities and problems inherent in any plan dedicated to preventing genocide.

Part III:  Short identification (worth 33%)

Identify six (6) of the following names, terms, or acronyms and briefly state the significance of them:

Reinhard Heydrich                  Euthanasia                           Adolf Eichmann

Wannsee Conference                 Sonderkommando                Eugenio Pacelli

Chaim Rumkowski                  Generalplan Ost                   Judenrat

Herschel Grynspan                Wilhelm Stuckart                 Typhus

Kallikaks                                Austin App                        Chelmno

Theresienstadt                     Hans Frank                      Musselmänner

Jürgen Stroop                       Raphael Lemkin                   Hamitic myth

Kapo                                      Millet system                   Daniel Goldhagen

Institute for Historical Review                                                 Meldungen aus dem Reich