Papers I wrote for school

8th Grade Holocaust paper

Wyatt ----------

Mrs. ------------

Language Arts

9 February 2015

Perpetrators: Why They Terrorize Others

Why do people terrorize others? Why would people hurt or harm other people? According to the Webster's dictionary a perpetrator is "someone who has committed a crime against another person." From 1939-1945 the perpetrator Adolf Hitler led the Nazis and started the Holocaust and hunted the Jews. Hitler would place the Jews and anyone who helped them into concentration camps. In 1945 the camps were liberated, and World War II ended. It is difficult to imagine people like Hitler and the Nazis terrorizing others, and there are still people who terrorize others today. One can learn from the perpetrators of the Holocaust that perpetrators are still in the world. The reason people terrorize others is because they want to dominate, they had a bad past, and they think they are doing the right thing.

The first reason people terrorize others is because they desire to dominate. During Hitler's teen years he was always dominant. He was the man of the house and did whatever he pleased. "Devastated by their defeat in World War I, the German people were looking for a leader" (Ayer 9). Hitler used the Germans so he could dominate Germany. When Hitler had risen to power in Germany He had plans to dominate the world and was not letting anyone stop him. Recently Korean Dictator Kim-Jong Un stopped Sony from releasing the new movie The Interview, but his attempts to dominate Sony failed. Even in today's time people try to dominate to get their way. A desire to dominate causes people to terrorize others.

The second reason people terrorize others is because of their bad past.During Hitlers later years he seemed to believe things of fantasy, one quote says "he had a readiness to live in a fantasy world and so to escape his failure"(). This is because of Hitler's past. Hitler was born on April 20th 1889, on Easter Sunday. Hitler had five siblings when he was young but only made it past childhood. His brother had died at the age 11 of measles. His death had a great impact on Hitler's life. Growing up Hitler's father Alois was very abusive. He and his father were in many arguments. When Hitler was thirteen his father died. Although sad, Hitler could do what he wanted. By the time he was nineteen his mother became ill with cancer. After trying to get rid of the cancer she had died. During that time Hitler had wanted to go to the Academy of Arts. He had failed his entrance exam and was homeless within a year. Just like Hitler's childhood, many bullies in schools are bullies because they are in an abusive household. In the world many abusive childhoods and bad pasts can cause bullies such as Hitler. A bad past can make people terrorize others.

The third reason people terrorize others is because they believe that they are doing good. In one of his speeches Hitler says, "I know my comrades, that it must have been difficult at times when you desired change that never came" (). Because the people wanted change Hitler promised it and the people followed him. During his rise for power Hitler was trying to influence the German people. Getting the Germans to recognize that the marxism was a plague and that the only way to change and keep Germany alive was to eradicate the Jewish population. Just like in the Holocaust there have been many reports of household abuse where the abusers excuse is that they are disciplining their child or spouse or believe that their actions are good. One can conclude that even in this time period people think they are doing something good, and that justifies terrorizing others.

People terrorize others because they want to dominate, they had a bad past or because they think they are doing good. Perpetrators such as Hitler had influences and reasons to terrorize the people of Germany and other countries during the Holocaust. If people knew about what happened to, and because of Hitler, citizens can prevent it from happening again. In todays time, many actions can take place to ensure that there is not going to be another Hitler. Schools can teach children about the Holocaust and Hitler. The government can put a stop to child abuse. Parents can set examples for their children on how to deal with conflicts. If these actions can take place then the world will be better.