MovieChat Forums > Holocaust (1978) Discussion > Lessons learned

Lessons learned

posted 17 years ago by sionxxii
1 reply | jump to latest

Everytime I hear someone use the words "pimp" and "whore", I'm reminded of a scene from this mini-series. "Name of whore that birthed you." and "Name of pimp that raped her." These were the questions asked by the admitting guard to the camp where James Woods is being taken. Anyone who thinks these words should be part of everyday conversation should watch this film. I was hoping that this film would have been quoted when David Shuster, of MSNBC, was suspended for asking if Hillary Clinton was'nt "pimping out" Chelsea for votes. Sometimes I really feel like Winston Smith. Shame on humanity....

[–] kaufmeisterin 15 years ago

I understand what you mean, but allow me to put your attention on something big you have been missing here:

the people who were really in scenes like that (remember you were only watching actors, not the real people!), they spoke german, and therefore no english words such as "whore" or "pimp" were used.

You cannot compare that with another language. In another culture the other language might be used differently. It makes absolutely no sense to have a discussion about the translation of assumed terms, and then reflect from that translated version into the original language.

The use of english words like "whore" or "pimp" have nothing to do with anything Holocaust, as the english language has never been used by any of the real people involved back then.