1. Awareness of Nazi atrocities: Initially shown as a career-oriented businessman, Schindler slowly becomes aware of the brutality and atrocities committed by the Nazis against the Jewish population. Witnessing the persecution and liquidation of the Jewish ghetto in Kraków sparks a shift in his conscience.
2. Empathy for Jewish workers: Schindler develops a strong sense of empathy and compassion for his Jewish employees, especially after he becomes aware of the terrible conditions they face. He realizes that they are not just workers but individuals with families and lives.
3. Moral conflict: Schindler struggles with a moral dilemma, torn between his personal gain and the desire to help the Jews. He faces difficult decisions as he tries to balance his business interests and the moral responsibility to protect his employees from the Nazis.
4. Taking risks: As Schindler becomes more committed to saving Jewish lives, he takes increasingly dangerous risks. He bribing Nazi officials, forging documents, and even hiding Jews in his factory to protect them from deportation and certain death.
5. Emotional investment: Schindler's emotional investment in the lives of his Jewish workers deepens over time. He develops close personal connections with many of them, seeing their humanity and their struggles firsthand.
Scenes illustrating Schindler's transformation:
1. When Schindler first arrives in Kraków, he demonstrates his shrewdness and business acumen, quickly establishing a successful enamelware factory while exploiting cheap Jewish labor.
2. The turning point comes when Schindler witnesses the liquidation of the Jewish ghetto, with people forced from their homes and sent to concentration camps. He is visibly shaken by the cruelty he witnesses.
3. As Schindler's understanding of the Holocaust deepens, he begins to take small acts of rebellion, such as providing better food and working conditions for his Jewish workers, even though they don't produce as much profit.
4. In a powerful scene, Schindler breaks down emotionally when he realizes the magnitude of the Holocaust and how many lives he could have saved.
5. During the liquidation of the Plaszów concentration camp, Schindler takes extraordinary risks by hiding Jews in his factory and disguising them as essential workers to protect them from transport to Auschwitz.
6. In the moving final scenes of the film, Schindler bids farewell to his Jewish workers as they are liberated by the Allies. They present him with a list of over 1,000 names of people he saved from certain death.
Schindler's story stands as a testament to the power of compassion, moral courage, and the ability of individuals to make a positive impact in the face of immense evil and historical tragedy.