Values and Violence in Auschwitz: A Sociological Analysis

by Anna Pawelczynska

English, Polish (translation)

Genres: Holocaust, History, Sociology

201 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

Reviews

[Jo Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant. This was my third Holocaust book in a row, quite by accident (I saw it on a friend's table), and am blown away by the wealth of wisdom to be found in these books. What makes us human? What do we owe one another? What were the psychological factors that led to those rare survivors being able to leave the camps alive? How did everyone else face their death?

"While observing the shapes of the chimney smoke from the crematory, and without losing one’s identification with those who died, one might envision little angels in flight and imagine the shape that one would take oneself at the appropriate time. Such a defense mechanism helped to lessen the camp terrors and the feeling of guilt toward those perished, as it also set a limit to Nazi power: what more can you do to me-I’ll fly out through the chimney. So what?”

"It seems that the moral problems of Auschwitz should be approached in a different way. It is obvious that a society's whole socio-economic and political structure has to affect the formation of a hierarchy of needs and values. As conditions improve, social needs grow and new cultural values appear, to which members of the society aspire."

"In every camp situation there would be prisoners forming into groups-though continually fragmented by the camp system-uniting together in the practice of the basic norm, "Do not harm your neighbor and, if at all possible, save him," even in the most oppressive conditions. It was the prisoner's most important field of battle."

[RobertL · Rating 4 out of 5]

Values and Violence provides interesting insights into how individuals could increase their chances at survival after arriving at Auschwitz. Anna's insights into the social hierarchy of camp officials and the unofficial social strata affected and impacted a captives life inside the camp and how well they faired during their internment. Sadly, while left unquantified, these survival coping mechanisms seem to have only added marginally to persons time and quality of spirit before ultimately succumbing to their ultimate demise.

One of the most insightful Chapters in the book was "Institutions of State Crime", that succinctly identifies 15-points that outlined the goals and objectives of those responsible for running and working in the concentration camps. Based on those points, everything else that happened to those admitted to camp was a pointless sadistic exercise. Very disturbing. I would recommend reading this book before a visit to Auschwitz.

[Shai-Ann Koh · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book really informative on the day-to-day experiences of prisoners at Auschwitz, especially the distinctions between the categories of prisoners as informing their place in the social strata. There were many new things I learned, many of which someone with only a casual interest in the Holocaust might miss or gloss over. Using a sociological lens to interpret the prisoners' experiences was interesting, too. It offered a more objective perspective (which must have been difficult, given the author's personal experience as a prisoner), which also gave the horror of the camp some distance. Or at least personally, as a reader, it was easier to distance myself from the awful subject matter because things were discussed rather matter-of-factly.

However, I'm not sure if it's due to translation difficulties, but some sections came across somewhat vague and I did not really understand what exactly the author was trying to convey. Many of the sources cited are in Polish (naturally), which made following up on some of the information a little difficult. Overall a great read for an in-depth look at the treatment of prisoners under the Nazi occupation.

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought at the Birkenau book store. Insightful analysis of how the prisoners joined forces in resistance.

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really want to say that I enjoyed it, however that would be a lie. I guess I had greater expectations from a book with such an ambitious title, however none of those were met. I found myself skipping pages and forcing myself to reach the end.