Holocaust survivor Primo Levi wrote several books recounting his experiences at Auschwitz. The Drowned and the Saved was his final book, penned some forty years after the event, and it provides some fascinating discussion of the historical significance of the horrors of the Holocaust. In this book, Levi also raises several important questions about the character of the Western Civilization that gave rise to the Nazi state, whose leaders conceived of and created the concentration camps. For this assignment, write a five-page paper in which you respond to Levi’s book and to the following question:
❖ In The Drowned and the Saved, does Primo Levi offer an explanation for how the Holocaust and Western Civilization are connected to each other? o If so, what is it?
Is he right? How do you know? o If he does not offer such an explanation, why not?
Is he right to ignore that connection? How do you know?
(^ CHOSE ONE OF THOSE QUESTIONS)
Whatever your answer to this complex question, make sure to explain thoroughly why you are right, using both the text of Levi’s book and, where appropriate, historical evidence (including, perhaps, the relevant primary sources in the Backman reader). The best essays will answer the question with a thesis that identifies Levi’s perspective, while also evaluating it, perhaps by distinguishing your own answer. Excellent essays will also, due to the nature of this question, make connections between Levi’s book and the larger history of Western Civilization.
Your essay should be typed in 12-point font, double-spaced, with 1” margins on all sides of the page. It should include an introduction in which you state a specific, analytical thesis that addresses all parts of the question, and which is subsequently supported by substantial, specific, textual evidence from The Drowned and the Saved.
This essay does not require any outside reading or research; the point of this assignment is to demonstrate your interpretation of the reading in light of the question assigned, so do not rely on the interpretations of other persons.
The evidence in the body of the essay should be organized logically into paragraphs, and the essay should end with a logical conclusion. Assume that your audience has not read Levi’s book, so be sure to introduce and explain unfamiliar terms and events briefly.
Cite your sources properly, consistently using any citation format you are familiar with (Chicago Manual of Style, MLA, APA, etc.). If you do not know how to cite properly, please ask beforehand; failure to cite sources properly is one form of plagiarism, so it is worth the effort to avoid.
Use and cite Primo Levi’s “The Drowned and the Saved” and also use sources from Clifford Backman’s “Sources for Cultures of the West”
