The Holocaust continues to exist as a black mark in German history; Thanks to government support for the torture and extermination of men and women, more than 6 million people lost their lives. Due to the collective tragedy of both sexes, there have been many debates about the gender-specific focus of suffering in Holocaust literature; for this reason, women writers' accounts of the Holocaust were largely ignored before the 1970s. Many historians still refute the existence of disparities between male and female experience. It should be noted, however, that the social, familial and cultural expectations of men and women, before and during the war, varied considerably. Moreover, these divergent roles fostered distinct ways of coping, processing, and reporting on the tragedies arising from the Holocaust. By examining the unique experiences of women, both inside and outside of concentration camps, one can logically conclude that these remarkable accounts expand the scope of Holocaust literature. Embedded gender roles contributed to women's survival efforts, and these unique female perspectives are valuable in accurately depicting the Holocaust experience. To begin defining gender-specific experiences, it is imperative to identify what attributes make an experience uniquely female. Although many women persecuted by the Nazis were mothers, it is important to consider the female narrative in more than maternal terms. Undoubtedly, the forced separation of mother and child was deplorable, but there was much more to the female experience. Women were also wives, sisters, aunts, daughters and friends; all of these relationships contribute to what constitutes the woman's specific narrative. As noted in The Holocaust: Theoretic...... middle of paper ......locaust Girlhood Remembered. New York: Feminist Press at the City University of New York, 2001. Print. Levi, Neil and Michael Rothberg. The Holocaust: theoretical readings. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2003. Print. Morrison, Jack G.. Ravensbrück: Daily Life in a Women's Concentration Camp, 1939-45. Princeton, NJ: Wiener, 2000. Print. Ofer, Dalia and Lenore J. Weitzman. Women in the Holocaust. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1998. 1. Print. Plank, Karl. Mother of the Fence: Inside and Outside the Holocaust. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 1994. Print. Rittner, Carol and Roth, John. Different Voices: Women and the Holocaust. New York: Paragon House, 1993. Print. “Voices from Ravensbruck Interview 242 - Manuscript Section, University Library, Lund University. » Lund University Library, June 18, 2009. Web. November 16. 2011.