You are on page 1of 4

Robertson, Geoffrey. An Inconvenient Genocide.

North
Sydney: Random House Australia Pty Ltd, 2014. Print.
Robertsons book An Inconvenient Genocide was a key source in
providing a foundation for my understanding of the Armenian
Genocide. In being written by an academic from a western
political/legal perspective, this source is reliable to a significant
extent, as Robertson has drawn upon his understanding of
international law in order to form an argument supported by
evidence and reasoning. He is a distinguished QC, human rights
lawyer and UN war crimes judge, illustrating his credibility. In writing
from the perspective of someone who has no person affiliation with
the genocide, Robertson is not highly emotive in his approach but
instead is providing the rational to support the recognition of the
Armenian genocide. Therefore, this source was particularly useful to
me as it investigated the relationship between the Ottomans and
Armenians as well as Turkish denialism. Being a source of significant
length and detail, it became difficult at times to distinguish what
information was most necessary and appropriate for my purpose.
However, the chapter The Politics of Genocide Recognition was
particularly useful as it detailed the Turkish position regarding their
firm denial of Genocide and the influence of which they have on
allied countries. Robertson refutes this idea of the Turkish claiming
that the massacres were strategic and necessary in civil war as he
looks at the legal reasoning that shapes the incident as genocide.
Further, the chapter is also useful as Robertson focuses in on
Australias response, providing evidence from Foreign Minister, Julie
Bishop. Therefore, this source was useful as it deals with and
justifies a variety of varying responses to the Armenian Genocide of
1915-1918. However, a limitation is that while it explores a variety
of accounts, it does not specifically focus in on countries that have
accepted the genocide and their rationale behind doing so.
Consequently, I used other sources to form a more solidified
understanding of these positions.

Adalian, Rouben. 'Armenian National Institute'. Armeniangenocide.org. N.p., 2015. Web. 3 May 2015.
This website is run and maintained by the Armenian National
Institute, dedicated to the study, research and affirmation of the
Armenian Genocide. While the source is complied of numerous
sources including Encyclopaedias, writings from academics, maps
and general information, I was able to extract the most relevant and
useful aspects for my purpose. The main author of the site is
Rouben Paul Adalian, the director of the Armenian National Institute
in Washington. Adalian also has qualification in the subject of
history, receiving his Ph.D. Therefore, in judging the reliability of this
source; it is reliable to a significant extent as it has a reputable
author. While Adalian is one author within the site, the information
also draws about journals of academics and other sources such as
textbooks. Therefore, I must consider where this information is being
taken from in certain aspects and parts of information in order to
ensure the reliability of other authors. In regards to usefulness, this
source was useful to a significant extent as it outlines in great detail
the context and legacy of the Armenian Genocide. This tab within
the website included The Official Journal of the National Council for
the Social Studies and specifically looks at the rise of Turkish
Nationalists and their silence and denial. Further, the use of
annotated maps and sources provided me with a greater
understanding of the context. Additionally, Alalians encyclopedia
entry Internal Recognition of Genocide gave me a good
understanding of commemorative resolutions of the Genocide and
detailed the agreement and formal acceptance of certain countries.

While this source provided me with an extensive amount of


information, I must consider and recognize that it is written from the
perspective of people who formally recognize the Genocide and
therefore, are not in favor of the Turkish position.

Auron, Yair. 'The Banality Of Indifference'. Google Books.


N.p., 2000. Web. 18 May 2015.
Yair Aurons book The Banality of Indifference was of significant use
to HIP project. Yair Auron is an Israeli historian specializing in
Holocaust and Genocide studies, racism and contemporary Jews.
Therefore, while I must consider that he is writing from an Israeli
perspective, the source is reliable to a significant extend due to
Aurons academic credibility. Further, Auron is not emotive in his
written expression but supports his argument with relevant
examples and reasoning. Consequently. The Banality of indifference
was of great use to me when writing my essay as at supported my
argument assessing the Israeli perspective in regards to denying the
Armenian genocide. In particular, I found Aurons ideas about the
Holocaust as a paradigmatic genocide and the uniqueness of that
experience extensively useful as they complimented my other
information and research for this body paragraph. Further, this
source was also valuable as it more heavily explored the TurkishIsraeli relationship and the implications of this alliance for Israel.
Auron revealed Turkish pressure tactics used by the Turkish
government to ensure that Israel avoided any affiliation with
ratifying the Armenian Genocide, supporting his claims with
sufficient and relevant examples. Despite the extensive information

proposed by Auron, I found it difficult to sort through what was


necessary for my HIP and what I could disregard. At times I had to
read through large sections with little or no relevance to my project.
Further, a limitation of this source is that it only provided me with
Israels response to the genocide from the perspective of an Israeli
historian. In extending upon my findings within this source, I also
investigated other historians reviews of this text in order to gain
alternate perspectives on the Israeli response and strengthen my
argument. Therefore, Yari Aurons The Banality of Indifference was
particularly valuable for my HIP essay.

You might also like