Marie
English
March 18, 1999

Self-determination gives people pride and independence. The ability to make choices about one's own life is the key to self-respect and confidence. It would be hard to live with no self-determination. It would be like living as robots with no hope and no dignity. We would be programmed to obey someone forever. Violations of self-determination can be found in every part of the globe and at any time in history. They are also depicted in books. For example, in the book The Giver, everybody's life is decided and organized from birth to death. In the autobiography I Have Lived A Thousand Years, Jews are the helpless victims of the holocaust. Forced to live in ghettos and to wear the yellow star, they were treated like an inferior race.

The book The Giver is one of the best examples of life without self-determination. This is the major theme in the book because choice does not exist. In Jonas's community, everything is decided: careers, marriages, friends, and even children. During the Ceremony of Twelve, children learn which kind of job they will do for their entire lives. There will be no possibility of change. Love and passion are not part of this life because adults will live with selected companions. They will be given two children, and they will not conceive them. Nature will not have any chance. It is a perfect example where the absolute lack of self-determination becomes a way of life for an entire community.

As for the Jews during the holocaust, a similar attitude was not only a tool to destroy their dignity, but their existence as well. After the Jews got their yellow stars, they were forced to leave almost all their possessions when they went to live in a ghetto. They were herded like animals in a fenced area which was guarded day and night. Escaping was unthinkable and meant death. They were obliged to live in tiny apartments with other families sharing kitchens and bathrooms. Food was scarce and distributed by the guards. Life was miserable and they were totally isolated from the rest of the world. I do not need to explain why the ghetto goes against any principle of self-determination, because the description of life there speaks for itself. These people had no choices. The Germans destroyed their peaceful life. Eventually, they would die in one way or another.

During the Holocaust years 1933 to 1945, the Jews were forced to wear a bright yellow star. This was created to distinguish the Jews from the non-Jews. It was more than a way to identify them; it was the symbol of their subordinate status. In the book I Have Lived A Thousand Years, all the Jews were given stars. Elli is ashamed of the star because it makes her feel inferior and almost abnormal. She does not go out of the house for a week. This is an example of a prevention of self-determination because the Jews can't choose whether to wear it or not. Religious beliefs are a very private matter and individuals are the only ones who should be able to decide to disclose their beliefs to others. In the book, Bubi takes the star like an award and is proud to wear it. It is his way to cope and even to retaliate against the mistreatment around him. I am not sure that I would have the ability to react like Bubi, although I admire his courage to stand up and use the star to strengthen his identity as a Jew. Nevertheless, nobody should be obliged to face such dilemmas. Being treated this way is especially difficult for children like me who do not have a complete understanding of their religion and what it means for others.

Therefore, the lack of choices such as having to be taken to a ghetto and having to wear the Jewish star are some important violations of self-determination. But there are many others. Today there are still transgressions of self-determination. For example, in other parts of the world there are genocides and lack of freedom in areas such as Africa, The Middle East, and even in Europe where Kosovo makes the headlines everyday. Self-determination is part of freedom and without it humankind cannot excel and go beyond its limit to create a better world.