Life Inside Auschwitz Essay

Auschwitz was the most populated concentration camp during the Holocaust time period. Over one million Jews died inside Auschwitz. That is higher than the entire population of some countries. Located in Southern Poland, Auschwitz served as a death camp for Jews and other suspected enemies. Some of the worst atrocities during the Holocaust time period occurred inside the walls of Auschwitz. Life inside Auschwitz was a shocking change to each and everyone of the prisoners' lives. Within Auschwitz, the conditions were described as horrible, accounting for various deaths. The conditions included wide spread disease, wooden beds, abuse, and other horrible acts. The first example goes into detail about these conditions. “Jews fell victim to

The Nazis were the “masterminds” behind the atrocities inside Auschwitz. They created all the concentration camps, which killed most of these Jews. The Nazis believed the Jews were too powerful and feared they would be overtaken by them. The first example talks about the war crimes committed inside Auschwitz. “After the war, hundreds of Nazi officials and SS soldiers would be tried for war times in connection with the atrocities committed at office” (Berenbaum). This quote describes how the Nazi officials were punished for how they behaved at Auschwitz. The next piece of evidence that will be used will show the horrible acts committed by a single person at Auschwitz. “Mengle, who became known as the ‘Angel of Death’, performed a range of experiments on detainees…” (A&E Television Works Editors). “... he injected serum into the eyeballs of dozens of children causing them excruciating pain” (A&E Television Works Editors). These quotes describe the nasty acts the Nazis committed on the prisoners. The next piece of evidence discusses the protection Auschwitz had and how unlikely it was for the prisoners of Auschwitz to escape. “Seventy-five percent of the Auschwitz Garrison performed guard duty. The SS guard Battalion was made up of 8 of 10 guard companies, and a company of Dog Handlers” (USHMM). This quote talks about how hard, nearly impossible, it was for prisoners of Auschwitz to escape. This also shows the minimum amount of

The Allies consisted of Jews, disabled people, and others inside the camp. The prisoners inside Auschwitz were sent to be slaves and work for Germans. If they could not work, then they were executed. Many Jews saw the camp as terrifying. They cried many times and were abused every single day. They barely slept and had no freedom whatsoever. This paraphrase describes the tragedy the prisoners had to go through every single day and what their daily lives consisted of. Also, On October 7th, 1944, hundreds of prisoners, inside Auschwitz, attacked guards with makeshift weapons and with handmade explosives. Nearly everyone involved was killed after. This paraphrase talks about how the prisoners knew they were bound to die, so why not attempt to escape/revolt? The next paraphrase discusses the arrival at Auschwitz and the process. When arriving at Auschwitz, you were given a tattoo to point out each prisoner. They also received shirts with numbers sewn into them. This evidence shows how each prisoner inside Auschwitz was unique and can be told apart. This next quote talks about how a prisoner escaped Auschwitz. “... there were numerous escape attempts, and on April 10th, 1944, two Slovak Jews- Urba and Wetzler- successfully broke out of Auschwitz-Birkenau” (Berenbaum). This quote shows that it was possible to escape Auschwitz, but the risks were high. The last piece of evidence gives us an estimated statistic of how many