Random Reflections Of A Second Rate Mind And Woody Allen Vs. Bettelheim

Allen vs. Bettelheim Woody Allen’s, Random Reflections of a Second-Rate Mind and Bruno Bettelheim’s, A Victim both give interesting perspectives on the events of the Holocaust. Though different, due to the angles of their writing, each author makes a clear statement on the tragedies of the event. To fully understand the statements made, one must account for the concepts of human nature, bigotry, and prejudice, whilst focusing on the comparison and contrast of the logos, ethos, and pathos of their writing. With this concept in mind, an apparent contrast in the logos of the works is present. In other words, Allen relies on the data of other people’s experiences for evidence and Bettelheim solely refers to his own memories. An instance of this is illustrated in Random Reflections of a Second-Rate Mind, “Later that night I recalled that at the end of Elie Wiesel’s fine book, night.” (Allen 1) This quote demonstrates Allen’s use of other sources for the logical support of his arguments to the reader. As a result, Allen is vague, referencing only the general conditions of the Holocaust, and Bettelheim is more specific. For example, “Clearly he had suffered and gleaned deep lessons from his anguish” (Allen 1) Allen’s use of the term anguish suggests that the individual had gone through harsh conditions yet it fails to provide any specific details on the events that occurred. Nonetheless, Bettelheim is more definite manifesting this when referencing his frostbitten hands, “I