Comparisons

Nesaule's Account Vs. Video Interview with Luna Kaufman

Oral History Interview with Luna Kaufman, courtesy of United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Online Catalog 

Kaufman

-From Krakow, Poland
-From upperclass family, well educated
-Active in Polish and Jewish life
-"Jews in Poland" as opposed to "Polish Jew"
-Twelve when war broke out (born 1926)
-45 immediate family members died during Holocaust, 45 immediate family survived
-Older sister and father died in Holocaust, Luna and her mother survived
-Very strong Jewish convictions, however Luna has very light features and could easily have used transportation for the "advantaged" people.
-She refused to be identify as a non-Jew
-The anti-sematicsm in East Europe was relatively accepted as a way of life in Kaufman's family as well as many other Jewish families
-To receive a good university they had to go outside of Poland to be accepted into school
-Went to public Catholic School, had a relationship with the teachers and they never forced her to pray with the other children
-Never found conflict with this, and was a faithful Jew.
-One day a man came to teach the students about the Jewish faith, and was a total flop, so Kaufman's father taught her most things at home.
-Saw the brutality start, but kept up the mentality that this had to end soon. Something will stop it before it continues to something worse.
-Her family was kicked out of their home and sent to the suburbs.
-Felt discomfort being with these new types of people who were poorer, and much less educated.
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Perhaps it's just my personal opinion, but video recounts always have a relatively bigger emotional impact on me. I've read many autobiographies of Holocaust survivors over the years, each emotionally draining, but having to watch the emotion or sometimes, lack of emotion, on the survivor's face makes the story more personal. 
Luna Kaufman is now the most fascinating person I've ever had the privilege of listening to. She sits in her seat with poise, elegance, and complete control. She has reached a point where she can look back constructively and verbally work out the reasoning behind much of her history. However her calmness could also be taken negatively. Does her lack of sadness mean that she was completely broken by her past? I don't believe so in this case. Kaufman comes from a well educated and courageous family. At the young age of twelve, she refused to identify as a non-Jew, adamant that it went completely against the way she was raised, and against her religion. Such self sureness is rarely seen in a child. It's just easier for me to follow her story as opposed to Nesaule. 
Not to say that they didn't share similar stories. Namely:
-Recounts of the Russian invasion
-Recounts of Russian soldiers raping and killing women
-The relocation from camp to camp
Both turned to public speaking/writing as a way of coping, however Kaufman began a bit sooner. She has published a book, and actively speaks in the US to school children. Kaufman already came from a strong minded family, so finding a burst of strength to share her story had to have been easier than Nesaule's.

I think the main point to address is that Luna lived through these camps almost entirely alone. Her sister and father were dead, and her mother and her were separated on multiple occasions. This would break most people's willpower, but Luna used it to make her stronger.