Subjectivity and irony
The irony of subjectivity comes through loud and clear in this account of Nazi concentration camps. The irony is dramatic irony because subjectivity gives each person a unique experience of reality based on their experience and point of view, but that also means that it isn't easy to appreciate another person's subjective experience or point of view. The question of empathy is rooted in the irony of perspective. In the case of the Nazis and the Holocaust, that dilemma is taken to the nth degree.
The schism of Nazi camps
Although people are typically very aware of the horror and despair of Nazi concentration camps, this irony often keeps people from admitting that Nazis were also human beings. Not only is the Holocaust a story of absolute psychological despair, it is also the story of absolute hateful mania. Levi's account shows that Nazis were not supernatural monsters; they were normal people. This irony manifests itself in the schism between guards and prisoners. The guards dehumanize the prisoners to abuse them, and the prisoners cannot believe such evil is possible among the guards.
In-fighting for scarce resources
The Nazis did not allow a sense of camaraderie to emerge among their prisoners. Levi reports that manufactured scarcity kept the Jewish prisoners constantly paranoid about each other, often to the point of outright violence and theft. The in-fighting for scarce resources made it so that, ironically, the other prisoners were also a source of threat or chaos. This was done intentionally to make the population of prisoners weaker and less likely to form any sort of resistance movement.
The Gray Zone
There was an ironic "Gray Zone" that Levi describes. He says that among the prisoners, sometimes a guard would invite certain prisoners to help in the administration of the camp. These "tax collector" types are ironic because they betray their own people to help the enemy. They trade personal advantage for loyalty, undermining the health and wellness of their own people and often turning cruel and combative in the process. The irony is potent.
Adaptation and survival
Levi comments that there was a survival of the fittest among the camp, which is painful to treat. The competition for survival in the camps reverts the prisoners back to their animal habits, so that adaptation and survival of the fittest are once again the only chance the prisoners have against death. This horrifying removal of society from the camps shows the prisoners something ironic about their nature; that they are mortal animal beings who will die. This is obviously an obvious truth, but still it is often ignored by the majority until crisis comes. Their awareness of death makes Levi's insights rather striking. He shares this insight with other Holocaust psychologists, like Viktor Frankl.
