Auschwitz and the Germans: The Remembrance of the Genocide

Auschwitz, today used as a synonym for the German genocide, is one of the most-talked about taboos in the political culture of postwar Germany. The collective consciousness of the Holocaust is characterized by feelings of shame and guilt. These unresolved feelings manifest in certain patterns of beh...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Benz, Wolfgang (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Oxford University Press 1994
In: Holocaust and genocide studies
Year: 1994, Volume: 8, Issue: 1, Pages: 94-106
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Summary:Auschwitz, today used as a synonym for the German genocide, is one of the most-talked about taboos in the political culture of postwar Germany. The collective consciousness of the Holocaust is characterized by feelings of shame and guilt. These unresolved feelings manifest in certain patterns of behavior, showing emotional philosemitism and newly-Inflamed resentments against Jews, a need to justify the German crime, as well as a systematic denial of historical facts. The keywords “preservation” and “remembering” are often mistinterpreted through a sense of shame and guilt which in turn leads to self-accusation. The moral attitude of taking responsibility as an essential part of political culture then misses its aim; only inadequate possibilities for confrontation are offered.
ISSN:1476-7937
Contains:Enthalten in: Holocaust and genocide studies
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1093/hgs/8.1.94