Course content varies. Offered occasionally by visitors or resident faculty.
Shoah in Polish Documentary Film
The course objective is to reveal the little known chapters of Polish history referring to the Holocaust. The class will view documentaries featuring the witnesses of the genocide as well as survivors and heroes of the Second World War. The class will also discuss the perspectives and testimonies of people from three different groups. The first group includes people such as Marek Edelman, who lived in the Warsaw Ghetto and participated in the April 1943 Jewish Uprising. The second group represents members of the Zegota, the only organization founded specifically for the rescue of Jews during the Nazi rule in Europe. One of the last leaving representatives of the Zegota (Council for Aid to the Jews) is Władysław Bartoszewski. Another noteworthy perspective belongs to Irena Sendler, also Zegota member and leader of 10 woman team who rescued 2500 Jewish children. The third group encompasses Poles (e.g., Jan Karski) who tried to stop the Holocaust by reporting Nazi atrocities to the Allies. Similar testimony reveals the heroic life of Witold Pilecki, who volunteered to be imprisoned at Auschwitz in order to organize a resistance movement within the camp with the ultimate goal of liberation.
Student learning goals
General method of instruction
Class assignments and grading