HOPE AMIDST HORROR: THE RESILIENCE OF WOMEN SURVIVORS IN HOLOCAUST

Abstract

The Holocaust is recognized as one of the most catastrophic genocides in human history, resulted in the systematic extermination of six million Jews. The origins of this atrocity can be traced back to pervasive anti-Semitism that predated World War I, rooted not only in religious prejudices but also in discriminatory perceptions of Jewish physiological and behavioral traits. With the rise of the Nazi regime, anti-Semitic policies formulated in the 1920s were institutionalized, leading to the establishment of ghettos—closed, open, and destructive—to isolate and oppress Jewish populations. This study focuses on the resilience of women who endured the horrors of Nazi concentration camps, exploring their capacity to withstand and adapt to extreme adversity under brutal conditions. The memoirs of Dr. Gisella Perl’s I Was a Doctor in Auschwitz and Olga Lengyel’s Five Chimneys serve as primary texts to investigate survival strategies and coping mechanisms. Utilizing Ann Masten's resilience theory as an analytical framework, this research examines the patterns of resilience exhibited by female Holocaust survivors.