What Drove the Doctor: Medical Experimentation in the Holocaust
Format
Oral Presentation
Abstract/Artist Statement
Medical experimentation was one of the worst atrocities of the Holocaust inflicted upon concentration camp victims by the perpetrators of Nazi Germany. However, unlike many of the perpetrator positions, almost all of the Doctors who participated were willing and volunteered for their duties. This paper will examine what motives could have possibly driven medical professionals to commit this horrible disregard of human life and suffering. Furthermore, they often justified their actions with the reasoning they were advancing science. In the context of Eugenics science in the 1930’s, the Doctors actions are not excusable, but their motivations are at least plausible. It is argued that some true knowledge came from the experiments, however even if a new advancement was discovered, the ethics of using such data are often called into question.
Location
DeRosa University Center, Room 211 A/B
Start Date
2-5-2009 9:00 AM
End Date
2-5-2009 12:30 PM
What Drove the Doctor: Medical Experimentation in the Holocaust
DeRosa University Center, Room 211 A/B
Medical experimentation was one of the worst atrocities of the Holocaust inflicted upon concentration camp victims by the perpetrators of Nazi Germany. However, unlike many of the perpetrator positions, almost all of the Doctors who participated were willing and volunteered for their duties. This paper will examine what motives could have possibly driven medical professionals to commit this horrible disregard of human life and suffering. Furthermore, they often justified their actions with the reasoning they were advancing science. In the context of Eugenics science in the 1930’s, the Doctors actions are not excusable, but their motivations are at least plausible. It is argued that some true knowledge came from the experiments, however even if a new advancement was discovered, the ethics of using such data are often called into question.