The article that this paper will be based and discussed upon is titled "Berthe's
prison diary," written by Hanna Diamond. "Berthe's prison diary" can be found in the
August 1999 issue of History Today, volume 49, pages 43-49. During World War II, it
was known that many people suffered. People suffered from the casualties of war,
suffered because of their class, but especially because of their race. The group to suffer
the most were the Jewish. Over 6 million were killed because of no crime but because of
their race. "Berthe's prison diary" is about a woman named Berthe A. and her experience
in the French prisons for collaborators. Besides Berthe's personal experience in prison,
through her diary, we also get accounts on how the other people were treated.
France gets invaded on May 10, 1940 by the Nazis. On June 22, 1940, France
signs treay of peace with the Nazis. Paris is liberated on August 25, 1944. The setting
begins in the August of 1944 in Toulouse, France. It was a time of despair and confusion.
France was in a chaos. People were hungry and were left in poor conditions. The
Germans had finally left Toulouse after their defeat. Joy came at first to the French when
the Liberation finally came, yet it soon turned to hatred and vengeance. There was
hatred to those that had helped the Germans succeed and also for those that allied with the
Germans. These people were labeled 'collaborators.' Even men and women that were
seen with Germans were hated. They were tracked down and even arrested. Some were
Berthe A. was the director of laboratory research in the Faculty of Science at the
University of Toulouse. On the twenty-second of August in 1944, at about three o'clock
(according to Berthe), someone knocked on her door and soon enough Berthe was
arrested. Of those that were arrested, many did not know ...