Vandermeer,+Spencer

Spencer's Page

**STEP 1:** TOPIC **SELECTION**

1. What is your topic? Give a brief overview.
My topic is on the holocaust, which is a very important event that happened during World War II. The holocaust is a very tragic event because 6 million Jews were what could be considered "﻿exterminated". During the war the Nazi party, which was led by Adolf Hitler encouraged prejudice against gypsies, mentally disabled, homosexuals, Jews and many others who were not of the Aryan race - blonde hair and blue eyes. "The Final Solution" was developped by the Nazis, which involved ghettos and concentration camps in horrible conditions. In total 11 million people were killed by the Nazis.

2. Give two reasons why you selected this topic. I chose this topic because I believe that it is one of the most important yet an extrememly sad event that happened during World War II. I also chose this topic because I am very interested to know why Hitler was against the Jews.

3. To what specific course(s) does your topic relate? Explain.
This topic relates to History 12, specifically the units that relate to World War II. It is also something that is introduced in Socials 11. 

4. Determine whether the primary focus of the issue is cultural, resource, economic, environmental or political. Explain your decision.
The primary focus of the holocaust issue is cultural due to serveral reasons. The event happened in Germany and it involved germans being led to believe that Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals etc. were inferior to the Aryan race.  === 5. **__ Recreate __** the following chart on a separate piece of paper. Using the following “K-W-L Organizer”, recall what you already know about your topic, organize any new ideas, ask questions and record your learning. === and set up concentration camps, where people were put in gas chambres to be killed. - 11 million people were killed, 6 million of them were Jews. - The holocaust during World War II was one of the greatest holocaust to happen in history. || - Why Hitler specifically was against Jews. - Why Hitler felt that the Aryan race was superior to others - How he got away with killing 11 million people || - Hitler blamed the Jews for many problems, such as Germany's financial problems. - After Germany's defeat, countries began to help with the holocaust issue - Hitler was a messenger boy during World War I || === 6. Based on your prior knowledge and studies, what are three important themes or issues pertinent to this topic? Outline and explain. === === Three important issues of the holocaust are for one, Hitler was against many people, such as Jews, gypsies, homosexuals, and anyone who was not of the Aryan race. Secondly, Hitler in attempt to exterminate the Jews worked along side people who came up with the actual idea of how to quickly get rid of the Jews, such as concentration camps. Lastly, Hitler not only killed Jews, he humiliated and discriminated against Jews. ===
 * === ** K: What I Know about the Topic ** === || === ** W: What I want to Know about the Topic ** === || === ** L: What I have Learned about the Topic from Preliminary Reading / Courses Studied ** === ||
 * - Hitler was the leader of the Nazis

7. Create TWO controversial questions about the topic that your thesis paper may answer.
Why Hitler specifically hated the Jews? Why Hitler felt that the Aryan race was superior to others? === 8. find 3 resources on your topic on the web that fit the criteria of a valid Internet resource. === 1) @http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/holo.html  2) @http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/ 3) []

=step 3: ** Developing a Hypothesis & Research Questions **=

**TOPIC: The holocaust and why Hitler decided to target specifically the Jews.**

**OVERVIEW OF TOPIC:** T he holocaust is a very important event that happened during World War II. It is a very tragic event because 6 million Jews were killed because of Adolf Hitler's comands. Hitler encouraged prejudice against gypsies, mentally disabled, homosexuals, Jews and many others who were not of the Aryan race.

**CONTROVERSIAL QUESTION(S) REGARDING TOPIC:** Did the people of Germany have any affect towards the death of many Jews? Why Hitler specifically hated the Jews? Why Hitler felt that the Aryan race was superior to others?

**HYPOTHESIS:** During World War I when Hitler was serving his country, rather than leading it as he did in World War II, there was an occurance, of which Hitler felt that the Jews were to be blamed.

**RESEARCH QUESTIONS:**  Ø **Factual Questions** What was Hitlers role in World War I? When did he begin to pursuade people that Jews were bad people?

 Ø **Clarification Questions** What happened after World War I to affect Hitler so negatively? Why was the holocaust necessary for Hitler to "achieve" his "goal"?  Ø **Interpretive Questions** Was it believed that Hitler's power was the main cause of people following his decision to be against Jews? Why did Hitler feel that the Ayran race was superior to others, when he himself wasn't of the Ayran race?

 Ø **Inquiry Questions** What were some major affects that the Jews suffered? Do Jews still suffer because of Hitler?

**__ Step 4: ESSAY OUTLINE __**

**Section 1 (Introductory Paragraph) **

A. After Germany’s defeat in World War I, Adolf Hitler successfully gained power due to failure of the Weimer republic. Germany was in a crisis, with the Treaty of Versailles upon them and a crashing economy, people needed to see a change and Hitler seemed to have the all the solutions. With knowledge, a strong army and very powerful means, Hitler turned the people of Germany to Nazism; however the people of Germany were not prepared for Hitler’s true intents. In total, 11 million innocent people were killed because of Hitler’s dictatorship, in which Hitler specifically targeted Jews.

B. Controversial Question(s): Did the people of Germany have any affect towards the death of many Jews?

C. Thesis Statement: When Germany was in crisis and people demanded someone to blame and for solutions, they turned to Hitler. At first, Hitler seemed to be the right person to get Germany out of the trenches. Without people turning to Nazism, Hitler would have never risen to power. Hitler had almost ‘brain washed’ the people of Germany into believing that his ways were right, which includes showing hatred towards the Jews. D. 3 Sub-Topics / Arguments: 1) Hitler’s role in World War I which caused him to target Jews. 2) Hitler’s hatred towards Jews, gypsies, people of the non-Aryan race and how he managed to convince people to follow his ways. 3) The steps that Hitler took to kill the Jews. i.e. concentration camps.


 * Section 2 ** **(Historiography)**

A. B. Overview of different streams of thought

C. Analysis of Evidence & Relation to thesis

D. Concluding Sentence

A. **Introductory Sentence / Major Idea** In the summer of 1914, when the First World War had begun, Hitler bravely served as Europe was torn to pieces.
 * Section 3 (Sub-Topic 1) **

B. **Evidence (with footnotes)** 1) Hitler served in World War 1: // - he had seen many deaths, fought in the trenches of the western front and fought mainly against British forces. // // “The total number of casualties in World War I, both military and civilian, was about 37 million: 16 million deaths and 21 million wounded.” // Wikipedia - Hitler was a dispatch-runner, he carried messages.  “Hitler was an isolated figure who spent long periods of time sitting in the corner holding his head in silence. Then all of a sudden, Mend claimed, he would jump up and make a speech. These outbursts were usually attacks on Jews and Marxists who Hitler claimed were undermining the war effort” – Hans Mend, a soldier from Hitler’s regiment  - the war scene was very brutal and many men had been changed just from the sight that they had seen // “Death was a constant companion to those serving in the line, even when no raid or attack was launched or defended against. In busy sectors the constant shellfire directed by the enemy brought random death, whether their victims were lounging in a trench or lying in a dugout” // Quote from Unknown - he was wounded twice, 2nd injury making him blind, he served his country very well.

2) Treaty of Versailles: - peace settlement in which the Germans had no choice but to sign  - people of Germany were mad that Weimar signed it  - humiliated Germany and marked its defeat  - Made Hitler feel like they had surrendered without fighting  - caused Hitler to want to rise to power to get rid of the Treaty

C. **Analysis of Evidence & Relation to thesis** Hitler was a brave soldier in World War 1, he served his country very well. Due to Hitler being so involved in World War 1, when the Treaty of Versailles was signed, he thought that Germany shouldn’t have accepted defeat so easily, which made him very angry. Hitler felt betrayed and he expressed his hatred towards Jewish people. Hitler believed that the Jews had too much money, power of the press and that they controlled too much of the German land. Hitler stated that they would try to mix with Aryans by marrying Christian men and women, who would end up having Jewish babies. According to Hitler, Jews had “bad blood” and with a great amount of Jews in the country, they may takeover Germany.

D. **Evaluation of Counter-arguments in relation to your present argument** Although his hatred for the Jews began during World War 1, Hitler did not begin to take action until after the war had ended. Jews began to be affected by Hitler in 1919, when Anti-Semitism was introduced.

E. **Concluding Sentence** Although, actions against the Jews were not taken until after World War 1, the events that took place during this time could be considered the main reason of Hitler specifically targeting the Jews, due to his belief that Jews were the cause of many of Germany’s issues.


 * Section 4 (Sub-Topic 2 Counter Argument) **

A. Introductory Sentence / Major Idea

B. Evidence (with footnotes)

C. Analysis of Evidence & Relation to thesis

D. Evaluation of Counter-arguments in relation to your present argument

E. Concluding Sentence


 * Section 5 (Sub-Topic 2) **

A. Introduction Sentence
January 30th 1933, Hitler was elected as the Chancellor of Germany, by the people, who were looking for solutions, which empowered Hitler to put out the idea that Jews were bad people. B. **Evidence (with footnotes)** 1) People were very unwell and needed help and someone to blame - people were poor, they were undergoing a depression. There were many diseases going around and people were dying of starvation.  2) Hitler began to provide solutions and rose to power - In 1919 Hitler joined the Germans Workers’ Party. This Party compared the country before World War 1 to its current state at the time, the state of the government, communists who led Russia and the Jews, who were considered the enemy. - Hitler gave speeches at meetings, which slowly became more popular as people decided that Hitler was the solution to their problems. Anti-Semitism was the main message that Hitler delivered. - As Hitler grew stronger, he renamed the Party, “The Nazi Party” in 1920. Hitler formed his own military and many people followed his ways. Hitler attempted to take over the government in 1923; however he failed and this is when he was sent to prison for 5 years; however he was only in prison for 9 months. In prison, he wrote Mein Kampf (my struggles) in which he wrote about how he hated the Jews. - In 1930, the Nazi Party became the second largest political party and soon after Hitler gained full power. At this time over 3 million Germans were out of work. 3) Hitler’s powerful words and strong ideas - When everyone was captivated by Hitler he took the chance to reinforce his message that Jews, Communists, gypsies, and homosexuals were bad people. Hitler stated that the Aryan race were the most powerful and should be treated in a much better manner than any other race.  - Hitler promised to rebuild his army. All political enemies were arrested, buildings were burned and it was blamed on the Communists.  - Hitler received total power, he was able to search homes and take property for no reason. Rewards were given for people who gave in Jews. People protecting Jews were to be arrested. Hitler did not release all information about what happened to Jews, he deceived the people of Germany and many secrets were kept by him.

People were in need of help, and that is what Hitler had promised them the help that they needed. At first, it seemed like Hitler’s ways were productive and a solution to their problems; however the people of Germany were so desperate for help, that any possible solution seemed like a good solution. Hitler gained total power and was able to do whatever he wanted to achieve his new world. Bribes were given to the people, information was kept back and the people of Germany were put into fear. Hitler had gained so much power that even people who did not support hatred towards the Jews, were forced to follow him.
 * C. Analysis of Evidence & Relation to thesis**

D. **Evaluation of Counter-arguments in relation to your present argument** For Hitler, gaining power was the first step to get rid of his 'new enemy'. Although, it was a very important part of his plan, the following moves that he took against the Jews, ended up taking their lives. E. **Concluding Sentence**


 * Section 6 (Sub-Topic 3) **

A. Introductory Sentence / Major Idea B. Evidence (with footnotes)

C. Analysis of Evidence & Relation to thesis

D. Evaluation of Counter-arguments in relation to your present argument

E. Concluding Sentence


 * Section 6 (Conclusion) **


 * A. Summary of Sub-Topics**


 * B. Restate the Thesis**


 * C. Positive, moral, lesson learned sentence**

Goldhagen, Daniel Jonah. //Hitler's willing executioners: ordinary Germans and the Holocaust //. New York: Knopf :, 1996. Print. Kuper, Jack. //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Child of the Holocaust //. [1st ed. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1967. Print.
 * <span style="border-bottom: windowtext 1pt solid; border-left: windowtext 1pt solid; border-right: windowtext 1pt solid; border-top: windowtext 1pt solid; padding-bottom: 1pt; padding-left: 1pt; padding-right: 1pt; padding-top: 1pt;">Section 7 (Bibliography) **
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