Fear
Today the ghetto knows a different fear,
Close in its grip, Death wields an icy scythe.
An evil sickness spreads a terror in its wake,
The victims of its shadow weep and writhe.
Today a father's heartbeat tells his fright
And mothers bend their heads into their hands.
Now children choke and die with typhus here,
A bitter tax is taken from their bands.
My heart still beats inside my breast
While friends depart for other worlds.
Perhaps it's better –– who can say? ––
Than watching this, to die today?
No, no, my God, we want to live!
Not watch our numbers melt away.
We want to have a better world,
We want to work –– we must not die!
-Eva Picková, 12 years old, Nymburk
Ellen,Annemarie,Kirsti,mom and dad were scared about the soldiers to enter the apartament.
ReplyDeleteThe Jews don't want to die and they wanted a better world, and in the book it's all about the time when Hitler took over & killed them but, they wanted to go to a place that is hadn't been taken over. The wanted their freedom!
ReplyDeleteThe girl in the poem cares about her family & the loved ones so much, that she wold rather die then watch them be treated so badly or be killed. This is where her "fear" comes from, and that's why says that it is different than any other fear.
There life was almost all fear
ReplyDeleteIt reminds me of when Ellen and Annemarie were running and the soldiers stopped them. Ellen was scared that the soldiers might take her, because she was Jewish.
ReplyDeleteEllen was afraid that the soldiers were going to kill her, but the girl in the poem had fear of the cruel way in which they were treated during that time period, that she preferred to die than keep living that way.
You are right ruth i like this poem to :]
DeleteThe countries near Germany and surrounding areas struggled because they had little food, and very bad living conditions. The Germans took over those countries and forced them to live with strict rules and very few things. I agree with what Marco said about Ellen and Anne being afraid of the Nazis, and the only thing they ate was bread and what they called coffee that was really was water. I think that it was because there was nothing to eat. When they were at Uncle Henrik's there was a little bit of cream, butter and oatmeal, because he could milk the cow. The fear is different because they want to die for their family, just like the Danes wanted to die for the king. There are a lot differences and one way or another they are going to find out that you are hiding some thing and they are talking in code so the Germans don't know what they are talking about. Also when they came from the school, two soldiers stop them and the Germans ask questions random ones but one of them saved them, because Kristi reminded one of the soldiers of his little princes like her..........
ReplyDeleteGermans treated Jewish people very badly. Some Jewish people preferred to die than live in the awful conditions that were going on during the war.
ReplyDeleteellen was scare of the soldiers were going to kill her she annemarie were running and the soldiers stopped them ellen was scared that the soldiers might take her .
ReplyDelete