Heroism In Schindler's List

Steven Spielberg 's “Schindler’s List” is a phenomenal movie that was produced in 1993. The movie won an impressive number of awards for its cinematography and screenplay, but also its plot. The plot was based on the life and effect of Oskar Schindler. Though he had started on the side of the Nazis, Schindler became a hero for the Jews by working to save their lives. Oskar Schindler was one of the most unlikely heroes of WWII. His motivations throughout his pursuit were the defining characteristics of his heroism. The first and foremost reason for the unlikelihood of his support of the jews was his affiliation with the pro-Nazi party. Schindler grew up in Sudetenland, a region that was later taken over by the NSDAP. The Nazi party began imposing its influence of Sudetenland in the 1930’s. According to

At first the businessman was motivated by commercial opportunities. Contemporary Heroes and Heroines stated “Schindler arrived in Krakow, eager to find a way to profit from the conflict in one way or another”(2). The man bought out a Jewish-owned enamelware factory later named “Emalia”. He unconsciously set himself up to easily save lives by locating himself right next to the Krakow ghetto, where hundreds of Jews were looking for work. According to The Holocaust Memorial Museum , out of the 1700 workers working at Emalia, around 1000 of them were Jews from the ghettos. Thus making the majority of Schindler’s workers Jewish (1). At the time, employing the Jews was just an opportunity for cheap labor. Over time, however, Schindler began to get to know his workers and take a liking to them. The man himself stated “I knew the people who worked for me. When you know people, you have to behave towards them like human beings” (Contemporary Heroes and Heroines 1). It was through this treatment of his workers that he grew apart from the Nazi