Narrating the Holocaust / Andrea Reiter ; translated by Patrick Camiller.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Reiter, Andrea, 1957-2018.

Standardized Title:

Auf dass sie entsteigen der Dunkelheit. English

Language:

English

German

Subjects (All):

Literature, Modern--20th century--History and criticism.

Literature, Modern.

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945), in literature.

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) in literature.

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Psychological aspects.

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945).

Psychological aspects.

Internment camps in literature.

Nazi concentration camps in literature.

Physical Description:

vi, 311 pages ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

London ; New York : Continuum in association with the European Jewish Publication Society, 2000.

Summary:

In this literary study of memoirs describing at first hand the horrors of German concentration camps, the principal question asked is: How did the survivors find the words to talk about experiences hitherto unknown, even unimaginable? Beyond being a mere analysis of discourse, Narrating the Holocaust reflects the situations in camp that triggered these responses, and shows how the professional authors adapted certain literary genres (e.g. the travel story, the Hassidic tale) to serve as models for communication, while the vast majority who were not trained as writers merely used the form of the report. A comparison between these memoirs and the more frequently discussed camp novel identifies the different narrative strategies by which the two are determined.

The concluding chapter deals with the question of meaning. While few survivors attach any meaning to camp life itself, most agree that coping with its misery, and with the memory of that misery, was greatly enhanced if some purpose could be found for their existence, whether in the form of physical or psychological resistance or of hope for a future life, reunited with their loved ones. Writing about their experiences has helped all survivors to come to terms with their ordeal, but the Holocaust has not turned any victim into a professional writer who was not destined to become one anyway.

Most of the 130 texts discussed here were published in German between 1934 and the present; some famous Italian, French and Polish texts and a small amount of archival material have also been included for comparison.

Contents:

1 Communication 11

2 Genre 50

3 Coming to terms with experience through language 84

4 The narrative of lived reality 135

5 Text and meaning: from experience to report 197

Epilogue: the Holocaust seen through the eyes of children 230.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 271-308) and index.

ISBN:

0826447368

0826447376

OCLC:

43615293