Comparing The Armenian Genocide And The Holocaust

Both the Armenian Genocide and the Holocaust were major historical atrocities that occurred in the 19th century. These genocidal events were recorded in many different forms; however, if one wants to understand how victims of these acts behaves then one must read a memoir. Memoirs provide evidence of violence toward women and real-life survival and coping mechanisms; however, there is a problematic issue of the author’s memory of the historical events of the Armenian Genocide and the Holocaust. Therefore, I will use the memoirs Black Dog of Fate, wrote by Peter Balakian, and All But My Life, written by Gerda Klein, to discuss these topics.

During the Armenian Genocide, women and children were usually the victims of the perpetrators’ violence. The Turkish people were harsh to women and children. The treatments they were subjected to were walking for countless days without proper food or sleep. However, during the Armenian Genocide were normally shot and killed in their hometown. Therefore, the men suffered almost instantaneous death; whereas, children and women had to endure long periods. For example, in the

However, memories are not always reliable. According to Psychologist Elizabeth Loftus, memory is continually being reconstructed by usual events that happen throughout one’s everyday life (cite video). Elizabeth also discusses that every time a person recalls a memory it is slightly distorted (cite video). Considering the fact that the authors of these memoirs are writing about stressful situations, then the memories are more likely to be distorted than usual memories because the hormones released during stressful situations cause the brain to form new connections (cite video). Thus while reading these memoirs, it needs to be taken into consideration that some of the information could be exaggerated or