2. What‟s Happening…
The Holocaust affected numerous amounts of people.
It‟s probably safe to say that all of human kind was
affected one way or another. After the Holocaust some
people did not want to talk about it ever again and
others openly did, through novels, poetry and even
songs to express their feelings and raise awareness.
William Heyen wrote Riddle to raise awareness and to
pose a very interesting question, “Who killed the
Jews?”. Through this poetry analysis, hopefully the
answer will become clear.
3. William Heyen
An American Poet
Born in the state of New
York in 1940
Grew up on Long Island
Both his parents
emigrated from Germany
He taught at a German
University and visited
Holocaust memorial sites
while there…
Because of his German
heritage, his Uncles who
both fought and were
killed in WWII (fighting
for Germany) and also
because of his visits to the
memorials, Heyen was
inspired to write multiple
poems about the
Holocaust, including
Riddle.
4. From Belsen a crate of gold teeth,
from Dachau a mountain of shoes,
from Auschwitz a skin lampshade.
Who killed the Jews?
Not I, cries the typist,
not I, cries the engineer,
not I, cries Adolf Eichmann,
not I, cries Albert Speer.
My friend Fritz Nova lost his father –
a petty official had to choose.
My friend Lou Abrahms lost his brother.
Who killed the Jews?
David Nova swallowed gas,
Hyman Abrahms was beaten and starved.
Some men signed their papers,
and some stood guard,
and some herded them in,
and some dropped the pellets,
and some spread the ashes,
and some hosed the walls,
and some planted the wheat,
and some poured the steel,
and some cleared the rails,
and some raised the cattle.
Some smelled the smoke,
some just heard the news.
Were they Germans? Were they Nazis?
Were they human? Who killed the Jews?
The stars will remember the gold,
the sun will remember the shoes,
the moon will remember the skin.
But who killed the Jews?
Riddle
By: William Heyen
5. From the death camps,
a crate of gold teeth,
a mountain of shoes,
a skin lampshade.
Who murdered the Jews?
Not I, shouts the typist,
not I, shouts the engineer,
not I, shouts Eichmann,
Not I, shouts Speer.
My friend‟s father was killed,
a narrow-minded officer made the choice.
My friend lost a brother.
Who murdered the Jews
The father was lead to the gas chamber,
the brother was abused and famished.
Some men signed their papers,
and some were guards.
Some brought them to the camps,
some emptied their guns,
some spread their ashes,
some hosed down the walls.
Some grew the crops,
some made the steel,
some cleared the rails,
some raised the cattle.
Riddle
By: William Heyen
(Paraphrased)
Some breathed the smoke,
some just heard news.
Who where the people? Where they
people?
Who murdered the Jews?
The sun, stars and moon will remember
The spoils from the camps.
But who murdered the Jews?
6. Title
(The First Time)
The definition of a „riddle‟ is… “A puzzling question, problem
or matter” (www.dictionary.com).
Since this project is to analyze Holocaust poetry, then it would
seem fitting that this poem is going to raise some puzzling
question(s) in regards to the Holocaust.
Also a riddle is something that requires lots of thought so this
poem isn‟t going to be „a walk in the park‟, it will make the
audience really think long and hard about what Heyen has
said.
7. Structure
Consists of 8 stanzas with 4 lines in each.
•
Makes for a short read and somewhat of a list in parts
Rhyming/Scheme
•
For most of the poem, the scheme is ABCB but not on stanzas 5 and 6 in order to highlight them.
By not carrying the rhyming scheme right through, it puts great emphasis on the fact that
everyone had a part to play in the Holocaust.
“shoes”/ “Jews” / “choose” / “news”
“engineer” / “Speer”
Punctuation
•
Used commas to accent the list aspects and cause the poem to flow fast and to make the
accusations stronger by pointing multiple fingers.
•
Very prominent in stanzas 5 and 6 and part of 4 & 7.
Used dashes, periods and question marks to highlight certain areas to make clear an important
idea.
“Where they Germans? Were they Nazis?/Where they human? Who killed the Jews?” (27-28)
“My friend Fritz Nova lost his father--/a petty official had to choose”(9-10)
The use of “-ed”
•
Heyen used a lot of “-ed”s in his poem to show that these things had happened and if they had
happened then it means that someone had carried them out making them the responsible ones
even when nobody owns up to their involvement.
“Herded, dropped, spread, hosed, planted, poured, cleared, raised” (17,18,…,23,24)
8. Connotation
“crate of gold teeth” (1), “mountain of shoes” (2), “skin lampshade” (3)
•
All of these „spoils‟ from the death camps have a very negative connotation
about them. These aren‟t just „things‟ like they are said to be by definition
but they leave you with a horrified feeling that these came from people;
living, breathing people.
“cries” (5,6,7,8)
•
This word has the feeling around it of desperation, anger and sadness.
These people don‟t want to be blamed or take responsibility for the
Holocaust so they cry “Not, I”. They are angry that it happened or that
they have been caught and blamed. And sad because it had taken place
and there were millions of lives lost. Also desperate to have the blame on
someone else‟s shoulders so that they can have a clear conscience.
“Belsen” (1), “Dachau” (2), “Auschwitz” (3)
•
With these names belonging to notorious death camps, they carry a
horrifying under lying meaning. The names honestly bring fear to the
readers, as I‟m sure they did to the Jews.
9. Repetition
•
Literary Devices
“Cries” & “Not I” (5,6,7,8)
Lots of people said that they weren‟t
guilty of the Holocaust
The typist was the one who „heard
the news‟ and never tried to stop it.
He just typed out what he heard for
the papers
The engineer built the infrastructure
for the Germans, such as roads and
industrial areas for them but yet he
says it wasn‟t him.
Eichmann was the „mastermind‟
behind the deportation of the Jews
but yet he says it wasn‟t his fault
Speer was the one who kept the
German War Machine going despite
the heavy presence and bombing of
the industrial areas. And yet he had
no part in the Holocaust.
•
“Who killed the Jews?” (4,12,28,32)
•
“My friend” (9,11)
•
This is repeated twice and adds a more
personal tone to the poem. Not only is
Heyen wanting to know “who killed the
Jews” but who killed his friends‟ families.
“Will remember” (29,30,31,32)
This repetition is useful because it shows
that the Holocaust won‟t be forgotten; the
survivors, the dead and the murders.
“Some” (17,18,…,25,26)
So many times “some” was used. And it
stands to reason that all of the some‟s
make up a collective of „All‟. These some‟s
point fingers at everyone who was
involved, or just “heard the news” (26). All
people played a role in the Holocaust
•
This is Heyen‟s big question, his riddle, to
the audience. And the repetition of it
shows that it is hugely important! His
whole poem revolves around this idea that
people need to know and others need to
take responsibility.
10. Literary Devices
Cont‟d
Personification
•
“The stars…the sun…the moon
will remember” (29-32)
This is a very powerful section
in Heyen‟s poem. Not only
does this stanza say that the
universe will remember the
Holocaust because of its
magnitude but it also hints at
the fact that the moon, sun and
stars know exactly who “killed
the Jews”. Because in
remembering all the „spoils‟,
they know exactly how they
were gotten and by whom.
Imagery
•
This poem is filled with imagery. In fact
every stanza creates a vivid image in the
readers‟ minds.
Stanza 1: Paints a clear picture of all the
shoes and teeth and skin lampshades.
Stanza 2: Can see people protesting
very strongly that they were ever
involved in the Holocaust
Stanza 3 & 4: Strong imagery of losing a
father and a brother through gas
chambers and starvation…can see the
men themselves as well
Stanza 5,6 &7: Shows all who were
involved; the Gestapo, Hungarian
Police, the SS Officers, the farmers, the
ranchers, the railway men and everyone
who knew that this was happening
Stanza 8: Once again there‟s the
imagery of the shoes and teeth and
lampshades.
11. Attitude
The overall attitude in Riddle is very serious and demanding.
• Heyen writes of a very serious topic which, of course,
makes the poem carry a serious note.
• He also writes with authority, demanding to know “Who
killed the Jews?” and there is also desperation in his
question. He needs to know because it is very personal to
him.
• Heyen also wants to make sure that he gets his points across
by using a firmness in his tone and also through the
structure.
12. Shifts
There are 2 major shifts in
Riddle…
1st Shift: Right between stanza
7 &8
•
Heyen shifts from asking
questions and pointing
fingers to saying that “the
stars will remember” (29) as
if to say they know the ones
who killed the Jews. It goes
from asking questions and
making assumptions to
actual witnesses knowing.
2nd Shift: “But who killed the
Jews?” (32)
•
„But‟ is the key word. The last
three lines had reader‟
convinced that there was an
answer and the stars knew it.
That was good enough for
Heyen, or so readers‟
thought. But the last line
shows that we as humans
still need an answer and need
people to own up to what
happened during the
Holocaust.
13. Title
(The Second Time)
The BIG question was “who killed the Jews?” It was repeated 4
times in Riddle which shows its importance to the author and
the readers.
The question does get answered though…we all killed the Jews.
From the men in Hitler‟s inner circle, to the farmers who grew
the crops to sustain the armies, to the engineer who built the
infrastructure, to the ones who wrote about it in the paper, and
to the ones who had only heard about the Holocaust. Everyone
was guilty because, in a way, everyone blindly followed.
I think it is a very appropriate title because reader‟s don‟t
understand the answer until a few reads through and some
analysis so it is in fact a riddle.
14. Theme
There are a few different themes that arise from the poem...
There are consequences to pay for your actions and you need to own up to
them.
•
No body wants to say they were apart of the Holocaust, which is represented by
the typist, engineer, Adolf Eichmann and Alfred Speer. They all cry out saying „it
wasn‟t me‟ but through the use of the „some‟ repetition and the „-ed‟s, Heyen
points out that some one is guilty and it needs to be recognized by the human
race “who killed the Jews” and not just by the stars, moon and sun.
Those who blindly follow are just as guilty as the active participators.
•
This goes along with the saying “tolerance will not be tolerated”. Just because
people aren‟t actively involved in the action doesn‟t mean that they haven‟t
played a role in the situation. Heyen represented this theme through the use of
„some‟ to show the indirect as well as the direct roles played in the Holocaust
[Ranchers, Nazis, Railway men, SS Officers, and those who “just heard the news”
(26)].
15. To Sum It All Up…
I really believe that William Heyen wrote a very powerful
poem. Through the excellent use of connotation, structure,
literary devices and the like, this poem challenges readers‟
ways of thinking. It calls the audience to task in their everyday
lives, not just referring to the Holocaust. We need to be able to
stand up for what we believe in and not just sit on the side lines
thinking that someone else will take care of it and that we aren‟t
causing the problem because we are just watching. I think that‟s
Heyen‟s biggest message; everyone is guilty who blindly follow
or turn away despite what we know we should do. Heyen
wants people to own up to their participation in the Holocaust
while warning the rest of us to not let anything like this, on a
large scale or not, happen again because no one said „enough is
enough‟. Riddle challenges readers in more ways then one
which makes it such an excellent poem!
