Chapter one The Museum as Educational Center
1.1 Education for Holocaust Remembrance
Ever since the Holocaust Memorial Museum took root in Washington D.C., ithas been connected to the goal of public education. The Holocaust Museum inshaping the public understandings and perceptions of the Holocaust plays a dominantpart in American Holocaust Education. Wiesel has once discussed the importance ofremembering the Holocaust: Like it or not, the Event must and will dominate future events. Its centrality in thecreative endeavors of our contemporaries remains undisputed. Philosophers andsocial scientists, psychologists and moralists, theologians and artists: all havetermed it a watershed in the annals of mankind. What was comprehensible beforeTreblinka1is comprehensible no longer. Forgetfulness is no solution. ( Elie Wiesel,“Report to the President”, 1979)In view of the reasons above, Wiesel has made it clear that the Holocaust shouldbe remembered, especially after the Treblinka, which has caused the death of morethan 1 million. Building the Holocaust Museum, the United States aims to warn theworld that to educate the next generation with the Holocaust is necessary. Thisdefinitely shows what Wiesel has considered the main function of the USHMM,which is to openly announce the Holocaust history so as to call for a warning to thepresent and future generations.
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1.2 Education for Genocide Studies
The Holocaust, which means more than 6 million European Jews were murderedand destroyed by the Nazi and its collaborators during the Second World War, isusually regarded as论文代写 a factor which has led to the birth of the term “genocide”.“Genocide refers to the coordinated and planned destruction of a group of people.While genocide is almost always accompanied by mass killing, this crime is anattempt to destroy the group, not necessarily to murder every member of thatgroup.”4Genocide was coined by Raphael Lemkin, a Polish Jewish lawyer, who holdsthat “the Holocaust was an extreme form of genocide in which the perpetratorssought to destroy a human group through the attempted murder of every member ofthat group.”5The term “genocide” did not exist until the happening of the Holocaust;in consequence, the Holocaust may become the starting point and the foundation forstudying genocide in the contemporary world.The similarity between the Holocaust and the Genocide lies in their concerningabout the mass murder to certain groups, while the difference for them is theHolocaust is the unique experience of the Jews, but the genocide means all the masskilling crimes against humanity. By using the Holocaust as an example, the museumaims to promote genocide study in the Holocaust Education.
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Chapter two The Museum as American Democracy Dissemination
2.1 The Museum as Democracy Dissemination
With respect to the educational benefit of linking the subject of the Holocaustwith educating for democracy, the museum aims to make the function of theHolocaust as a warning signal against the anti-democratic ideas as well asdisseminate American democracy. As a foreign entity, where is far away from the various concentration camps, theU.S. has built the Holocaust Memorial Museum by imposing its democraticprinciples on the event of the Holocaust. The museum, on the one hand, spares greatefforts to disseminate the “certain unalienable rights”, which rights can be found inThe Declaration of Independence. On the other hand, it also attempts to create anarrative about the democracy with universal significance. All the HolocaustMuseums in the United States, especially the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C.,are places “where Americans first learn, and later reassure themselves, about theirculture, history, environment, or technology.” (Luke 151) Therefore, the Holocaustmuseum can be used as an efficient tool for democracy dissemination.Museums, in fact, are known not only to present objects, but also to transmit amessage. Through the Holocaust Museum, the visitors get the chance to know theHolocaust timeline, the social influence and the realistic meanings. The museum’sinfluence lies in its role to impact the audience’s perception. With the museumbecoming more influential among the public, it is quite likely to make the Americandemocracy known to more visitors. Museums have the function to “solidify culture”and “endow it with tangibility, in a way few other things do.”（Dubin 3）Exhibitionsand collections can teach the visitors about Holocaust history and also inspire thevisitors’ actions. The U.S. Holocaust museum has generally undertaken the task toeducate the public about the democracy in the Holocaust Education.
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2.2 Interpreting Democracy through Exhibitions
Located in the heart of the nation’s capital, the Holocaust appears as a crimeagainst American ideals because it is surrounded by Thomas Jefferson Memorial andWashington Monument, both of which are built for the extremely important leadersin American history. However, the Holocaust Museum, which is merely concernedabout the Jews, who only accounts for a small part of the American population, isbuilt at the heart of the nation, from which we can see that the meaning of suchmuseum is not simple and easy. By interpreting the exhibitions and the educationalachievement of those Holocaust studies, a conclusion can be drawn that theAmerican democracy for ethnic equality is conveyed in those studies.In the year 1979, President James Carter had once acknowledged that Nazismwas “facilitated by the breakdown of democracy” and affirmed that “a democraticgovernment must function and perform basic services and that human rights must beprotected within the law.” (Karel 165) Hence, the museum’s role for strengtheningthe democracy in the Holocaust Education is quite urgent and necessary.
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Chapter Three The Museum as Liberty Dissemination..........36
3.1 The American Troops as Liberator.........37
3.2 Interpreting American Liberty through Exhibitions.........39
3.2.1 The American liberation exhibit.........40
3.2.2 The Exclusion of Other Liberation Countries.........42
3.2.3 The success of American freedom.........44
Chapter Four The Museum as Humanity Introspection.........46
4.1 Introspection for Human Nature.........46
4.2 Educational meaning for Americans.........52
Chapter Four The Museum as Humanity Introspection
The Holocaust, an unprecedented crime against humanity, has fundamentallyaltered the world’s attitude towards the acts of genocide. The Holocaust Education,which provides the public with many important lessons that may help prevent suchcrimes from happening again, means a lot to the contemporary public. The humanbeings need to reconsider their inner hearts and introspect themselves to ensure thatthe historical lessons of the Holocaust are remembered, shared and applied. Only bypondering on the humanity can the realistic meaning of American HolocaustEducation really work in educating people about the danger of anti-humanitybehaviors.The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has collaborated with theprofessionals from various fields, such as diplomacy, education, and religion, andlaid more emphasis on the respective responsibilities. This chapter will focus on theHolocaust Education’s role to arouse contemporary witness and moral responsibilitytowards the Holocaust, and through the exhibitions, the visitors’ attentions tocontemplate on humanity and responsibility will be aroused.
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Conclusion
The role of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum is of great importance inAmerican Holocaust Education. This thesis mainly discusses the roles from fouraspects, namely, the educational center, the democracy dissemination, the libertydissemination and the humanity introspection. The educational meaning of themuseum can be understood by providing appropriate Holocaust exhibits, historynarratives, the various teaching materials, the committee and the meaningful quotes,which are used to arouse visitors’ emotion, conscience and contemplation over theHolocaust. The Holocaust is a large and all-encompassing event and the museum isconstructed in commemoration of such kind of historical event, the victims, and theideas learned from the past.
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