I was recently cast in a fall musical here at American University entitled I Never Saw Another Butterfly. It focuses on the terror and destruction that befell the Czechoslovakian jews who were taken to Terezin, a ghetto during World War II, and, most importantly the beauty of their hope. I am a jewish mother in the show, and thus have spent the past week of my life becoming an individual terrified by circumstances that have placed me out of control of my family’s or my own life. As an actress it is my job to become her mentally and thus make choices, both mentally and physically, that she would make. As practice has become more and more intense, I have begun to see and feel what it was like for victims of the Holocaust. Tying this concept into world politics, I know for certain that Machiavelli was entirely wrong in his assertion about two sets of morals. As Hitler rose into power, began the Nazi Regime, and started to transport, relocated, cluster, and murder the Jewish population of Western Europe, he may have been thinking and acting according to Machiavelli’s definition of a good ruler. He may have considered his actions impersonal, and necessary for his cause.
I consider my role in the show as an embodiment of every mother whose life was torn to tatters by the Holocaust. I have my children and my husband torn out of my arms and I can tell you that the politics of the Holocaust was personal to every individual involved. His choices destroyed millions of people’s way of life, their families, their societies... everything. It is impossible to say that his actions were moral. Machiavelli says that there are two sets of morals: personal and necessary for politics. He would approve of a number of human rights violations if they were deemed necessary to a political regime, because its on a political level and it doesn’t apply to one’s personal morals, but I contend that there is only one set of moral codes, because every decision, even if made by a political figure, is personal to at least one person.
I'm conflicted on this one, Hilary.
ReplyDeleteI am the great-grandson of a Czechoslovakian Jew who narrowly escaped the camps as a child by smuggling herself and her sister out of her home country in a hay-wagon. She had pitchforks jabbed into the hay by Nazi soldiers looking for stowaways but luckily she made it out alive. The same can not be said for her parents and the rest of her (and my) family. So obviously this post (and your play which I will definitely be attending) stuck a personal chord with me.
That being said, as a rule I am against the use of Hitler and Stalin as examples of power. There will always be twisted tyrants who bend the rules of society for their diabolical purposes and I don't believe one can use them as a fair example of power politics. Some acts are so monstrous they defy all rules of humanity
I agree that both Hitler and Stalin are very extreme examples of power gone awry, however, that doesn't change my opinion that there is only one set of morals, unlike Machiavelli's idea of separating out personal and political morals.
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