Cultural Memory Of The Holocaust
Cultural Memory of the Holocaust
Lillie Taylor
LIB:316 Historical Context & Literature (BPC1504A)
Sherane Heron
February 23, 2015
This paper will examine and analyze the turning points in the construction of Jewish memory and the identity in Israel as influenced by and based on the events of the Holocaust. This subject is also important for Poland as a country to come to grips with the last decade of the 20th century when it entered onto the path of social dialogue and bilateral relations with Israel. Understanding each partner’s collective memory and identity and confronting it with our own mental images seems to be the only path of future dialogue. Study of memory and identity building in Israel can also help Poland to deal with its own past and images. (Cebulski, n.d.). We must also be able to tell the difference between memory and identity and in order to do that we must first understand how the two interact with each other. Memory can take on different forms depending on whose doing the remembering, and who is sharing the information. Whether it be personal or family or private group preferences allows, and some time will enforce the changes, omissions and interpretations made by others that could serve some current purpose or sometimes be implemented without visible aim. There is always some kind of political or social context in which memory is created and shared. Memory can also be altered according to current needs (Thelen,1989). According to (Halbwachs, 1992) collective memory is the reconstruction of the past with data and facts from the present time; it is based on stories and documents provided by eye witnesses and later be processed by historians. The holocaust was a time of great sorrow for the Jews and other religious groups. The Nazis, along with German armies were responsible for the starting of this horrific event which was one of the most tragic events in history. In the bible, the Jews were
Lillie Taylor
LIB:316 Historical Context & Literature (BPC1504A)
Sherane Heron
February 23, 2015
This paper will examine and analyze the turning points in the construction of Jewish memory and the identity in Israel as influenced by and based on the events of the Holocaust. This subject is also important for Poland as a country to come to grips with the last decade of the 20th century when it entered onto the path of social dialogue and bilateral relations with Israel. Understanding each partner’s collective memory and identity and confronting it with our own mental images seems to be the only path of future dialogue. Study of memory and identity building in Israel can also help Poland to deal with its own past and images. (Cebulski, n.d.). We must also be able to tell the difference between memory and identity and in order to do that we must first understand how the two interact with each other. Memory can take on different forms depending on whose doing the remembering, and who is sharing the information. Whether it be personal or family or private group preferences allows, and some time will enforce the changes, omissions and interpretations made by others that could serve some current purpose or sometimes be implemented without visible aim. There is always some kind of political or social context in which memory is created and shared. Memory can also be altered according to current needs (Thelen,1989). According to (Halbwachs, 1992) collective memory is the reconstruction of the past with data and facts from the present time; it is based on stories and documents provided by eye witnesses and later be processed by historians. The holocaust was a time of great sorrow for the Jews and other religious groups. The Nazis, along with German armies were responsible for the starting of this horrific event which was one of the most tragic events in history. In the bible, the Jews were