Defining Genocide
In this paper I want to define both evil and genocide, and determine whether or not the act of genocide is an evil act. I will first define evil, and give some characteristics of evil acts. I will then give a brief history of the man who coined the term genocide, and his fight to make acts of genocide illegal worldwide. I will then give several other scholar 's definitions of genocide, along with various characteristics. I will conclude my paper by determining whethor or not the definitions and characteristics possess the characteristics of evil acts.
What is evil? Evil is a form of wrongdoing that violates a moral standard. Moral standards place constraints on us and our behavior, giving reasons for acting or not acting …show more content…
His name is Raphael Lemkin. Lemkin was born in June 1900, to a Polonized-Jewish family. From a young age Lemkin was fascinated with mass murders such as the persecution of Christians by Nero, who fed them to lions. He read books about ethnic groups being killed off. Lemkin could relate to the stories growing up due to various tragic events that took place in the surrounding areas. Such events included Jews getting injured or killed in local progroms, and his home becoming a battle ground between Germans and Russians. When Lemkin was still a grad student, he read the story about the mass murders of Armenians at the hands of Taalat, and was appalled that there were no reprocussions for Taalat 's crimes. He did not understand why no one stepped in to stop the …show more content…
This list helps point out how to identify genocide, alog with giving possible solutions to each. These stages include: classification, symbolization, dehumanization, organization, polarization, preparation, extermination, and denial. He says classification deals with characteristics that separate one group from all others. These are often identifying characteristics such as race or ethnicity. Classification plays a large part in determining who the target of genocide is. The second stage is symbolization, which applys a symbol to the group. The group is given a name and some outer identifier, that makes members easy to differentiate. According to Stanton, the first two stages are "universally human and do not necessarily result in genocide unless they lead to the next stage, dehumanization". The third stage as previously mentioned, is dehumanization. This involves denying the group their humanity, turning them into things rather than people. This is apparent in Lemkins Professor 's statement about Taalat and the Armenians, where he compares the Armenians to chickens. Propaganda starts to show up in this stage, and the targeted group is vilified. If the majority of the population is in agreement, then dehumanization becomes easier. The fourth stage is organization, and is always present in cases of genocide.often genocide if organized by the state,
In this paper I want to define both evil and genocide, and determine whether or not the act of genocide is an evil act. I will first define evil, and give some characteristics of evil acts. I will then give a brief history of the man who coined the term genocide, and his fight to make acts of genocide illegal worldwide. I will then give several other scholar 's definitions of genocide, along with various characteristics. I will conclude my paper by determining whethor or not the definitions and characteristics possess the characteristics of evil acts.
What is evil? Evil is a form of wrongdoing that violates a moral standard. Moral standards place constraints on us and our behavior, giving reasons for acting or not acting …show more content…
His name is Raphael Lemkin. Lemkin was born in June 1900, to a Polonized-Jewish family. From a young age Lemkin was fascinated with mass murders such as the persecution of Christians by Nero, who fed them to lions. He read books about ethnic groups being killed off. Lemkin could relate to the stories growing up due to various tragic events that took place in the surrounding areas. Such events included Jews getting injured or killed in local progroms, and his home becoming a battle ground between Germans and Russians. When Lemkin was still a grad student, he read the story about the mass murders of Armenians at the hands of Taalat, and was appalled that there were no reprocussions for Taalat 's crimes. He did not understand why no one stepped in to stop the …show more content…
This list helps point out how to identify genocide, alog with giving possible solutions to each. These stages include: classification, symbolization, dehumanization, organization, polarization, preparation, extermination, and denial. He says classification deals with characteristics that separate one group from all others. These are often identifying characteristics such as race or ethnicity. Classification plays a large part in determining who the target of genocide is. The second stage is symbolization, which applys a symbol to the group. The group is given a name and some outer identifier, that makes members easy to differentiate. According to Stanton, the first two stages are "universally human and do not necessarily result in genocide unless they lead to the next stage, dehumanization". The third stage as previously mentioned, is dehumanization. This involves denying the group their humanity, turning them into things rather than people. This is apparent in Lemkins Professor 's statement about Taalat and the Armenians, where he compares the Armenians to chickens. Propaganda starts to show up in this stage, and the targeted group is vilified. If the majority of the population is in agreement, then dehumanization becomes easier. The fourth stage is organization, and is always present in cases of genocide.often genocide if organized by the state,