There are two major aspects to keep in mind with this assignment

GUIDELINES FOR PAPER #2

A Holocaust joke: Two Jews decide to assassinate Hitler. They learn that he drives by a certain street corner at noon each day, and so they wait for him there, their guns well hidden. At exactly noon they're ready to shoot, but there is no sign of Hitler. Five minutes later, still nothing. Another five minutes pass, but no sign of the Fuhrer. By 12:15 they start to give up hope. "My goodness," says one of them, "I hope nothing has happened to him."

Holocaust humor -- does this phrase sound like an oxymoron to you? Maybe you think it's sacrilegious to treat such a serious topic as the Holocaust in a humorous vein. If you ponder it, though, you may come to realize that humor is probably an important tool in understanding the Holocaust. In fact, its implementation may also have been an important survival mechanism for those in the concentration camps.

In Yiddish, this brand of humor is referred to as a bittere gelechter, a bitter laughter, or laughing through one's tears. It applies to the belief that there are moments of great humor in even the darkest circumstances, and those moments of levity can be sustaining. As David Bergman, an Auschwitz survivor has claimed, "'When I was held captive early in the death camps, a few of us victims who somehow managed to maintain a positive outlook on life would get together secretly after work just to exchange humorous stories. These exchanges helped us to temporarily numb the horrors we faced, thus making it possible for us to make it through another difficult and trying day'" (Davidson).

For your assignment on humor and the Holocaust, as delineated in the Italian film Life Is Beautiful, there are two major aspects to keep in mind: One has to do with the content, and the other with the format.

CONTENT
There are a number of on-line articles that delve into using humor to delineate events of the Holocaust, in general as well as in film in particular. Some of these are listed below. You can access any of them by clicking on the underlined title.

    "Humor As a Defense Mechanism in the Holocaust," by Chaya Ostrower
    "Humor in the Holocaust: Its Critical, Cohesive and Coping Functions," by John Moreall, Ph.D.
    "A Resistance Movement of Humor," by Steve Lipman
    "The Value of Holocaust Humor"
    "Holocaust and Humor?," by Caroline McCracken-Flesher
    For Hitler Must Be Laughed At," by Andrea Gyenge

Below are Internet links on Life Is Beautiful. However, you should, of course, feel free to use your own resources, whether on line or actual texts.

    An interview with Benigni in The Guardian, 11/7/98
    Article on Life is Beautiful, by Erika Milvy in Salon Magazine, 10/30/98
    Criticism of the film in "The Unbearable Lightness of Benigni," by Charles Taylor, in Salon Magazine, 10/30/98
    Analysis of the film by Yazmin Ghonaim, Cinephiles, 1998
    Analysis and review by Katharine E. Monahan Huntley, Dramatica
    Must-read scholarly article on Benigni's film
    An insightful overview, including reviews and a reference to Chaplin's The Great Dictator
    "Escape From Auschwitz: Life Is Beautiful Turned the Holocaust Into a Sentimental Fable" by Alan A Stone, M.D., Psychiatric Times, April 2000 Vol. XVII Issue 4.
    "Camp Comedy" by Slavoj Zizek, Sight and Sound, April 2000.
    Laugh You rself to Death: The New Wave of Holocaust Comedies" by Slavoj Zizek, Discontinuities, 1999.
    Rev. of Life Is Beautiful, by Michael D'Angelo
    Rev. of Life Is Beautiful, by Bryant Frazer, Deep Focus
    Rev. of Life is Beautiful by Susan Jagminas, Peace Magazine
    "Life Is Beautiful...An Appreciation" by Freda Freiberg, La Trobe University

Of course, you needn't use the sources listed above; you are free to consult articles and books of your own choosing. In addition, I want you to include your own opinions as to whether it is okay or egregious to use humor to delineate events of the Holocaust.