A small act of courage.

Is it right to risk bringing such danger on one's relatives and friends by challenging the forces of law and order? This question always puzzles me. As we know, if most non-Jews stood up for Jews, they would be tortured or even killed. A while ago in class, our teacher asked 'If you had Jew next door neighbor for years, and than they were being taken away, would you stand up against the Nazi's and help them?' Of course you would like to. But there are often too many risks, often involving your family and friends as well. You see, surviving is a human instinct, so even though you may want to help them, because of the consequences. Most wouldn't speak up. Some brave-hearted would. The people of Le Chambon Sur Liginon did just that. They saved Jews for years, risking everything they had for good.

Many woman sent children to Switzerland, avoiding forces that could have been risky. Even though the ones who didn't stand up would be safe, the villagers in Le Chambon where the real survivors. They saved an others life, risking there's. The Villagers in Le Chambon were heroes. The people, who watched the persecution of Jews and did nothing, may have felt deep guilt. Guilt which was later too strong for them. So in some cases, it’s not a good idea, but in the end you may find that it’s the wrong decision to simply watch. People who did stand up felt pride, and joy that they saved people. Heres the Le Chambon website: http://www1.yadvashem.org/righteous_new/france/trocme.html

In Some in cases I would say you should stand up. Feel pride. In 'the boy in the Stripped Pyjamas ‘ this courage appeared. Bruno, the young protagonist, son of the Nazi commandant at Out-With (Auschwitz) showed this courage even though he didn't really understand what was happening around him. It. His was a very small act of resistance. But one small boy can make a very small change, even if it isn't noticeable. He didn’t really help anything, but he remained loyal to his friend and saw no difference based on religion. He simply saw him as a human being. Even though nothing changed after Bruno and Shmuel got sent to the gas chambers, Bruno 'invisibly' brought a bit of hope to Jews and Shmuel. Perhaps Bruno’s death might have made his father stop and think. I have to admit that Bruno didn't go up and stop a Jew from going to a Concentration camp. But he did give hope to Shmuel, and a friendship that helped Shmuel go through many struggles.

Another similar example is '‘Rose Blanche’' by Roberto Innocenti. It has a similar idea to the boy in the stripped Pyjamas. When Rose Blanche finds a concentration camp, she helps the Jewish children by giving them food. Again, I find that it’s an invisible Resistance. Even though she was not fighting against the governmental laws, she brought hope. Rose Blanche was also a real resistance against Hitlers party, heres the website : http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007188

Altogether, I find that if you want to do the right thing and stop what’s wrong, and risk bringing your family into danger, it s good to do that. Mind you, you would need to be very brave hearted like the people of Le Chambon. Risking your life is a very hard thing to do. But if you knew that it was risky, you probably didn't. Even though this would be the easier choice, you might have a feeling of guilt. I find that standing up is the right thing to besides the consequences. Justice is the key word to success.

Reflection on "Rose Blanche":
I find that the book 'Rose Blanche' connects with John Boynes book, 'The boy in the stripped pyjamas' in many ways. They both contain the 'idea of one against all'. Side against side. Some people stuck in the middle. Choices. Sacrificing, and mostly courage to see the dignity of all people.The town that Rose Blanche stayed in often had the affect of darkness, being shown in things such as the weather and people. Dark, grey sky's. Gray buildings and people. But in all the photos Rose Blanche was very brightly colored, as if a girl of hope. It was almost similar when Bruno moved to the New house out of Berlin, Men wore uniforms, and his house was gray and dark. Gray and dark colors are symbolized as troubled times, or a horrible place. Both are used in this way.The 'oppression' is also linked to the 'dividing', 'clothes (again), and food. Both Jews and non-Jews are separated by similarities and differences. Behind a fence, separated by one barbed wire, separating them from truth and reality. Clothes come in with the sense of how Jews had their clothes taken away by the Nazi's. At the end of the book, her clothes are found torn on the barbed wire. Its as if she’s stuck between both sides of the barbed wire, Jews and non-Jews. Like she can't chose between which is right and wrong. Clothes also appeared in colors, bright colors and dark. Food came in many things as well, such as how the Mayor was a very fat, plump man; this also showed his high statues. As for the Jews, they were lower down, a lower status and getting lower and lower. Thinner and Thinner. The biggest themes I find here are 'death for a life’, 'Resistnce', and most of all ‘curiosity and innocence’ where Rose Blanche is used to build up the story.

Steve McCurry Essay

Steve McCurry shocked the world with the Afghan girl; voted one of the best 100 photos in the world. Ever since then, he has been one of the world’s biggest photographers with his fascinating work, on humanity and, as I would say ‘the part of people’s lives we don’t see with our own eyes’.
McCurry’s main themes with his photography mainly consist with humanity ; in this case, life on the streets, all about human life. ‘His images capture the humanity of his subjects sometimes in difficult circumstances’ as Mrs. Whiting commented on her blog. When I think of Steve McCurry’s photos, I think of Poverty, War, grief, and sorrow. Not as in a bad way though. It shows how fortunate some of us are, and how some of us go through troubles every day, but they just learn to live like this. But some of McCurry’s photographs show the beauty of nature, and humanity. Not all of his photography is Pain and war. In fact some of his photos show the beautiful side of life.
‘What is important to my work is the individual picture. I photograph stories on assignment, and of course they have to be put together coherently. But what matters most is that each picture stands on its own, with its own place and feeling’ Steve McCurry

‘Every gun that is fired, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.’ Steve McCurry
To me, the main photos that stand out to me from Steve McCurry’s photographic collection… to me mainly come up under the ‘groups’ such as ‘Children at war’, ‘Afghan Wars’ and also photos of Children playing on tanks, and of poverty on the streets. But the main photo that stood out for me was the first photo under ‘Children at war’ on McCurry’s blog. A young boy, around 3 or 4 is standing in the middle of the picture. He has dirt slightly covering his face. He has war-combat type clothes on by the looks of it. His head is down, and he doesn’t seem to be too scared. You may ask why. This is because his tiny hands are holding onto a gun, almost as large as him. Right behind him the is a tall man, with his hand placed on the boys head, as if he’s trying to tell him that he’s in charge. You can’t see the mans upper body, so it’s hard to imagine what his facial expression would look like. Both men and boy are dressed in black and a very dark green, making the picture seem wearier. What surprised/shocked me about this photo was actually how calm the little boy seemed. His eyes just look forward, but slightly down at the camera, his eyes piercing your heart. If I was him, I would be terrified holding a gun at that age. This made me realize that he had been brought up like this. The war caused by the adults where influencing children to live this life. Because of this, how would these young children act when they were older?
In this photo I think that Steve McCurry is trying to tell us that humanity isn’t always perfect, and that some of us need to live through harsh conditions which most of us couldn’t live. He’s trying to tell some of us how fortunate we are ; and how some of us need help

McCurry’s work has really inspired me about Humanity, and about how the world really is. Sometimes when I see a photo, it just stares at me blank. But not like most of Steve McCurry’s photos. I see his passion. I see his grief. I see his fantasy of taking that photo, which could change his life forever. Photographs can be very powerful. Just like the Afghan girl, they can change someone’s life forever. Photographs can also show how the world is doing, or how it needs to be helped. Photos CAN make people be inspired. Some photographs make people want to go out there and change the world. To me, a great photo shows passion in the Photographer. It isn’t just a photo. Every photo is a masterpiece for the photographer. Not just that, but he ENJOYS what he’s doing. A photographer, who doesn’t enjoy taking photographs, doesn’t show real Passion in his work.

Fishermen cleaning nets, families sharing meals and celebrations, artisans crafting their wares, nomads continually on the move; even the most seemingly mundane activities can be inspirational when you look beneath the surface.' Steve McCurry

Check out his blog : http://stevemccurry.wordpress.com/?ref=spelling