Schindler’s List

Schindler’s List

by

Thomas Keneally

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Judenrats Term Analysis

Judenrats were Jewish councils instituted by Nazi Germany to oversee Jewish communities in occupied territories. Some accuse the Judenrats of collaborating with Nazis to impose their will, but at least in Cracow, the Judenrat often acted as a buffer between local Jews and the Nazis.

Judenrats Quotes in Schindler’s List

The Schindler’s List quotes below are all either spoken by Judenrats or refer to Judenrats. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Virtue and Selflessness Theme Icon
).
Chapter 10 Quotes

The councilmen of Artur Rosenzweig’s Judenrat, who still saw themselves as guardians of the breath and health and bread ration of the internees of the ghetto, impressed upon the Jewish ghetto police that they were also public servants. They tended to sign up young men of compassion and some education. Though at SS headquarters the OD was regarded as just another auxiliary police force which would take orders like any police force, that was not the picture most OD men lived by in the summer of ’41.

Related Characters: Oskar Schindler
Page Number: 96
Explanation and Analysis:
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Judenrats Term Timeline in Schindler’s List

The timeline below shows where the term Judenrats appears in Schindler’s List. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 5
Virtue and Selflessness Theme Icon
Anti-Semitism and Dehumanization Theme Icon
Power Theme Icon
Duty Theme Icon
Bureaucracy Theme Icon
Gebauer talks about the Judenrats, Jewish councils that have been set up in each community by Governor Frank. They supply... (full context)
Chapter 7
Virtue and Selflessness Theme Icon
Anti-Semitism and Dehumanization Theme Icon
Power Theme Icon
Duty Theme Icon
Bureaucracy Theme Icon
...Stern tells Schindler about the imprisonment of Marek Biberstein, who had been president of the Judenrat until his arrest. Biberstein had tried to be a buffer between the Germans and the... (full context)
Virtue and Selflessness Theme Icon
Anti-Semitism and Dehumanization Theme Icon
Power Theme Icon
Duty Theme Icon
Bureaucracy Theme Icon
Initially, the Judenrat is made up of 24 men, primarily intellectuals. As the leader, Biberstein believes that Jews... (full context)
Chapter 10
Virtue and Selflessness Theme Icon
Anti-Semitism and Dehumanization Theme Icon
Power Theme Icon
Duty Theme Icon
Bureaucracy Theme Icon
In the summer of 1941, the Judenrat enlist men into the OD, the Jewish ghetto police, by trying to portray the role... (full context)
Chapter 13
Virtue and Selflessness Theme Icon
Anti-Semitism and Dehumanization Theme Icon
Power Theme Icon
Bureaucracy Theme Icon
...out with help from a friend who lies and says Pfefferberg is part of the Judenrat. (full context)
Chapter 16
Virtue and Selflessness Theme Icon
Anti-Semitism and Dehumanization Theme Icon
Power Theme Icon
Duty Theme Icon
Bureaucracy Theme Icon
The Judenrat don’t inform ghetto dwellers about the horrors of the camps, feeling that it would only... (full context)
Chapter 32
Virtue and Selflessness Theme Icon
Anti-Semitism and Dehumanization Theme Icon
Power Theme Icon
Duty Theme Icon
...to pressure Goldberg to include Dr. Alexander Biberstein on the list (brother of former Cracow Judenrat president Marek Biberstein. Goldberg had earlier told Dr. Biberstein he was on the list, only... (full context)