"The Fire Within"

Sophie Scholl (1921-1943)was a German activist who is famous for speaking out against the Nazi regime.

Scholl was a member of a protest group called The White Rose, which was formed by her brother Hans and some of his university friends. The group mainly consisted of students in their early twenties who were fed up with the totalitarian rule of the government. The Nazis controlled every aspect of society – the media, police, military, judiciary, communication system, all levels of education and all cultural and religious institutions. The White Rose distributed leaflets urging their fellow Germans to oppose the regime through non-violent resistance.

On 22nd February 1943, after the release of the sixth White Rose leaflet, Sophie, Hans and fellow member Christoph Probst were arrested by the Gestapo and convicted of treason. They were executed that same day by guillotine. Sophie was 21 years old.

The following is a cartoon created by Zen Pencils from a quote attributed to Sophie Scholl.

THOUSANDS OF PROTESTERS ARRESTED

The real damage is done by those millions who want to “survive”; the honest people who just want to be left in peace; those who don’t want their little lives disturbed by anything bigger than themselves; those with no sides and no causes; those who won’t take measure of their own strength for fear of antagonising their own weakness; those who don’t like to make waves - or enemies; those for whom freedom, honour, truth and principles are only literature. Those who live small die small. It’s the reductionist approach to life; if you keep it small you’ll keep it under control. If you don’t make any noise the bogeyman won’t find you. But it’s all an illusion, because they die too, those people who roll up their spirits into tiny little balls so as to be safe. Safe?! From what? Life is always on the edge of death. Narrow streets lead to the same place as wide avenues... and a little candle burns itself out just like a flaming torch does.

“ I CHOOSE MY OWN WAY TO BURN ”

zen pencils

Gavin Aung Than is a cartoonist based in Perth, Australia. After working in the corporate graphic design industry for 8 years he quit his unfulfilling job at the end of 2011 to focus on his true passion, drawing cartoons. Gavin launched Zen Pencils at the start of 2012, a cartoon blog which adapts inspirational quotes into comic stories, and hasn’t looked back since.

Gavin Aung Than