FREE ESSAY ON THE IRONY OF LIBERATION

THE IRONY OF LIBERATION

Though this paper had a few punctuation problems, I made a B+ on it and this is a sophmore
level class.
The Irony of Liberation
When the liberators came, they came with hope of eliminating the torture and inhumanity
the Nazi Germans were imposing on the Jews. Men and women came with the hope of releasing
victims from the evil claw that had grasped Jews for so long. Some liberators came with
the idea that the Jews would be given a new life, a life of freedom. However, freedom was
far from what Jews were given after liberation. To the many Jews, who stood on the other
side of the barbed wire fence, liberation was not a time to celebrate. Yet, it was a time
to try to pick up what particles of life that remained. As Lucille Eichengreen explains
in her testimonial story of liberation day, liberation was not about freedom. 
It was expected that there would be casualties of war. U.S and Russian army men had seen
victims of war before[,] [RO] and nothing could be shocking. Or could it? As army men
approached the barbed wire fences, many gasped in horror, turned their heads, and some
men became sick. With their fingers ringed tightly around metal threads, Jewish souls
stood, gazing at young healthy men. Empty eyes gazed back at these young and healthy
bodies, bodies that were an inadvertent insult to the half-living. Time was motionless at
one moment, and fast-forwarded the next. After all that had happened, were these victims
really free? Was it a time to celebrate? Where would they go now? Who would take them?
Much less, who would believe that such inhumanity happened? The looks received by nurses
were not looks that showed sympathy, nor compassion, but instead offered back the images
of Nazi ideology; the idea that Jews were filthy, weak and feeble people. And they were,
but not by their own free will.
Though color seemed to be restored as liberators approached, it also brought back the
color of emotions. For so long, Jews had numbed themselves to the atrocities they faced
each day. Being "free" now meant looking for remnants of life. For many, liberation was
simply a reminder of all that was lost. Eichengreen explains, "Despite our liberation, I
was totally without hope" (340). 
There were those who thought of their loved ones who fell victim to the wrath of Hitler's
final solution. While others, especially children wondered who would care for them. Many
felt guilty that they survived and their friends and family did not. For many, liberation
was not an immediate invitation to a new life. Recalling liberation day, Eichgreen says,
"I had dreamed of a great party, with fanfare, music, dancing and fireworks. There was,
however, only renewed sorrow for the dead and little hope for the living"(342). 
Those who found the strength to journey back home were hit even harder by former
neighbors. As former Jewish residents came home, many were told to leave, despite the
"liberation". There were also those less fortunate, who had no home to return to, known
as "Displaced Persons". Along with the displaced persons, lived Nazi sympathizers, who
routinely practiced anti-Semitic behaviors. So again, the question arises: Were the Jews
really "liberated"?
Though all may have seemed lost, one must keep in mind that the Jews are survivors. And
survive is what they did. Just shortly after liberation, Jewish strangers were marrying,
children were born and life prevailed. Though Jewish people will never be liberated from
the nightmares of Hitler's reign, perhaps the ability to replenish life through new
birth, will. 
Bibliography
Images from The Holocaust: A Literature Anthology
Jean E. Brown, Elainw C. Stephens, Janet E. Rubin