By Madeline Kauffman

I believe Ida and Neighbors to be excellent pieces of work that compliment each other quite well. Both focus on the horrific events that occurred during World War II, in which the Poles committed horrible crimes against the Jewish population within their nation. The main difference between the two, however, is the use of scale. Gross’ Neighbors was useful to read first, as it concentrated on the entire town of Jedwabne and the pogrom that took place there. The reader obtains crucial knowledge in regards to what happened and how the Jewish population was murdered (and by who) within this specific town. Through the analysis of numerous sources, Gross essentially reveals the villains of these mass murders to be the Polish neighbors, rather than the German occupiers. The reader also understands that events similar to the one that occurred in Jedwabne happened throughout multiple towns within the Polish nation.

Ida goes on to focus on one particular family and explores the more personal aftermath of the tragic and hideous murders of the Polish Jews. From the movie, one can understand how the events that are described and analyzed in Neighbors, affected the survivors, family members, and friends of those who were killed. The narrowing of the scope to two individuals, Ida and her Aunt, provides a deeper look at how these people came to terms with the atrocities, and the difficulties they had with gaining information about their relatives. The difficulties they had along their journey ultimately reflects back to Neighbors, in which Gross explains the denial that was, and most likely is still, seen amongst the Polish people with regards to the acceptance of the murders and the role their people played in them.

Ida and Neighbors, though separate pieces of work created by separate individuals, work together to provide the important context needed to understanding Poland during World War II, and offer different perspectives and levels of scale to aid in one’s overall comprehension of the massacre of the Polish Jews.