Book review

The Holocaust in American Film, by Judith E. Doneson, explains accounts of how the Holocaust event has been used in films to stimulate the American minds. Doneson’s thesis is to be historically responsible and accurate when presenting information of any kind, this case being the Holocaust. The book does not hold back any historical information surrounding the tragic happening of the Holocaust, whether the information came from America or Europe. Judith Doneson explains the movie Schindler’s List along with a variety of others. Judith explains how the Holocaust films affected audiences in various time periods. The book helps to connect and give light to a framework of movies and television that have kept the tragic event from becoming nonexistent in American minds. The book deals with issues containing anti-Semitism views towards the Jewish people and how American film portrayed them. Judith feels that there are three major films that address the threat of Nazi Germany over the Jewish people.
Judith begins the book with explaining the era of 1934 through 1947. America had been through the depression, and the country was trying to stand on its feet again. The depression was a time that left many people in terrible circumstances. Many of those circumstances were; hunger, suicide, un- employment and psychological damages. Luckily for the future generations to come, American film was there taking footage of all the aspects of life and the effects it had on our fellow Americans. American film during those years was not just around for documentary purposes, America film wanted to start sending a message to their viewers. Judith explains, “Hollywood began to confront issues of importance, tackling, for example, themes of social conscience films like Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Juarez (1939), and The Grapes of Wrath (1940)”. Even though films were being made in a responsible manner to educate people, it was unclear how many Americans really understood the onslaught the Jewish people were facing from Hitler in Germany.
Hearsay is one thing, but for many seeing is truly believing. Judith felt that there were three films in particular that gave importance to the threat of Nazis to the Jewish community and dealt with anti Semitism views towards the Jews. These three films she speaks of are; The House of Rothschild (1934), The Great Dictator (1940) and Gentleman’s Agreement (1947). Each of these films are different in their plots but they all share common themes of anti-Semitism views towards the Jews, hoping to make audiences understand what can happen from prejudice views that turn persecution. These films helped make America home for the Jewish people. Even though these films were recognized with great reviews, some Jewish Americans felt that these films gave too much attention to them because they just wanted to be left out. Some felt that by giving importance to the anti-Semitism views, it kept the ideas alive in American minds instead of fading away from memory. Nevertheless, it is more highly held that these films were crucial educating device for Americans to be able to accept the integration of Jewish immigrants.
Television has proved to be a device that has captivated people in every region it is offered. Television reaches the eyes, ears and minds of people that are normally uninterested. Even though the Holocaust has been in films and portrayed in many different aspects, television is not limited to any restrictions. Michael Arlan puts it best; “Television has become the major source of our perceptions of the world at every level, be it news, sport, talk, or social values”. Television is so powerful because it offers information in a way that any person watching it can understand and be a part of the event. Television has been a key in keeping the Holocaust fresh in American minds.
The American films and televised shows have sent a similar message to viewers that America is a place for salvation for those under siege. The portrayal of the Holocaust that has been shown in American has been changed to make Americans sympathetic with the event. This poses a problem for historical content, in the manner that America is taking the event from Germany and the Jewish people. This was not the goal when transforming the information for the viewers; it was just a butterfly effect that was unforeseen. No matter the implications of the issues, it is evident that in any form the information is better for Americans to know what had happened to the Jewish people in Germany. James Oliver Robertson expands on this thought; “The social process of explaining and understanding is often very different from the realities of the actual phenomenon being explained. The difference is vividly true of wars”.
Judith E. Doneson’s book was not an easy read. This book needs to be studied chapter by chapter in order to retain all the information offered. The book she wrote seems to have a few different theses. The theses I got from the book were; the integration of Jewish people into America through films, how the films affected the Jewish communities’ image in America, how America took the Holocaust from Germany, how film made the Holocaust an American experience and how television has become the major educator of information. I think she wanted to be objective and responsible to the events that had transpired. I have not seen any of the movies or television shows listed in this book and before reading the book, I never cared about doing so. This mindset comes from being generations away from the Holocaust. I now feel that it is my duty to understand the events that have transpired during the Holocaust. I want to understand the standpoint of the American view, along with German experience. Michael Kammen states; “It might just as well not have happened. Conversely, history hinges upon memory; the necessarily selective, collective remembrance that suits a society, without memory no knowledge”.