Oskar Schindler

Photo of Oskar Schindler (yadvashem.org ())

"I was now resolved to do everything in my power to defeat the system.". I believe Oskar Schindler was a hero for the fact that he saved the Jews because of personal reasons related to his childhood. Oskar Schindler is considered a hero for his empathy and determination when trying to save the Jews from the Holocaust by having them work in his factory. Schindler expresses his empathy towards the Jews when they were being discriminated. He expresses his feelings on Germany's misjudgment in this quote: "If you saw a dog about to be crushed underneath a car, wouldn't you help it?" This quote states how even from the beginning of the discrimination, he always wanted to help the Jews because of personal and emotional connections to his childhood. He used the dog figuratively as the Jews were being abused and almost literally crushed by Nazi rule. This is why I believe Oskar Schindler was a hero based on the acts he did with a personal initiative which led him to be determined to do what he felt was right.

Oskar Schindler and his wife, Emlie (jewishjournal.com ())

Oskar Schindler maybe showed empathy towards the Jews because of personal reasons shown in "Schindler inhaled his first breath on April 28th, 1908 in Austria, Hungary, where he spent his childhood years among both German and Jewish playmates" (Rooney)*. His father was an alcoholic and his mother died young, but that didn't stop Schindler from becoming one of the most talented and charming businessmen who could profit from the most unlikely situations, especially a war", having both German and Jewish classmates meant that Schindler was given a perspective on both sides before developing a strong connection with a Jewish classmate Rooney. Having his father as an alcoholic and mother not around meant that Schindler was alone and possibly made him understand how the Jews felt when they were losing their families. Schindler's determination may not have just been to bring justice to the Holocaust victims for its inhumane acts but for more deep reasons we may never know.

Schindler and some of the Jews he saved

When Oskar Schindler saved thousands of Jews, he felt guilty for not doing more. Some may ask why he felt like he didn't do enough, maybe he felt helpless due to his personal experiences. Maybe he felt even more helpless for not saving more lives because of the tragedy of losing his mother? He never truly realized that he saved thousands of people from 'hell'. "For the Schindler Jews, the nightmare was over. During the last days of WWII Schindler fled to Germany, without any money. In 1949 received from a Jewish American charity and emigrated to Argentina." Oskar Schindler saved the Schindler Jews from a long lasting hell that could have taken their lives and he didn't see how much good he had actually done

Schindler was cared for by the survivors from his factory by doing this good deed and was loved even after his divorce with his wife at the end of WWII. Schindler might have done a lot of good but that didn't mean he was a perfect human being. "He married Emile Schindler at the age of nineteen, but was never without a mistress or two". He might not have been a very trustworthy person for his relationship with his wife was very poor so he might not have had a lot of love in his life so he turned to having a mistress to try and fill the emptiness. This could be a sign that Oskar Schindler might have been a lot like his alcoholic father.

Some of the Jewish women saved from the gas chamber ( ())

He might not have been reliable on people but the Schindler Jews trusted him as if he were their light which makes him a hero to them. Oskar Schindler maybe didn't save the Jews because of a political or profitable value but from a deeper and emotional battle. This is why I believe that Oskar Schindler was a hero for his selfless acts that may have been influenced by an event in his childhood. He inspires me to use my experiences to help people. I like to look back on it and I know now that in the beginning he might have saved thousand of Jews back during the Holocaust but now more the a million people are alive because of his deed.