Approaching an Auschwitz Survivor

Holocaust Testimony and its Transformations

Nonfiction, History, Jewish, Holocaust, European General
Cover of the book Approaching an Auschwitz Survivor by , Oxford University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: ISBN: 9780199799015
Publisher: Oxford University Press Publication: August 18, 2009
Imprint: Oxford University Press Language: English
Author:
ISBN: 9780199799015
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publication: August 18, 2009
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Language: English

Among sources on the Holocaust, survivor testimonies are the least replaceable and most complex, reflecting both the personality of the narrator and the conditions and perceptions prevailing at the time of narration. Scholars, despite their aim to challenge memory and fill its gaps, often use testimonies uncritically or selectively-mining them to support generalizations. This book represents a departure, bringing Holocaust experts Atina Grossmann, Konrad Kwiet, Wendy Lower, Jürgen Matthäus, and Nechama Tec together to analyze the testimony of one Holocaust survivor. Born in Bratislava at the end of World War I, Helen "Zippi" Spitzer Tichauer was sent to Auschwitz in 1942. One of the few early arrivals to survive the camp and the death marches, she met her future husband in a DP camp, and they moved to New York in the 1960s. Beginning in 1946, Zippi devoted many hours to talking with a small group of scholars about her life. Her wide-ranging interviews are uniquely suited to raise questions on the meaning and use of survivor testimony. What do we know today about the workings of a death camp? How willing are we to learn from the experiences of a survivor, and how much is our perception preconditioned by standardized images? What are the mechanisms, aims, and pitfalls of storytelling? Can survivor testimonies be understood properly without guidance from those who experienced the events? This book's new, multifaceted approach toward Zippi's unique story combined with the authors' analysis of key aspects of Holocaust memory, its forms and its functions, makes it a rewarding and fascinating read.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Among sources on the Holocaust, survivor testimonies are the least replaceable and most complex, reflecting both the personality of the narrator and the conditions and perceptions prevailing at the time of narration. Scholars, despite their aim to challenge memory and fill its gaps, often use testimonies uncritically or selectively-mining them to support generalizations. This book represents a departure, bringing Holocaust experts Atina Grossmann, Konrad Kwiet, Wendy Lower, Jürgen Matthäus, and Nechama Tec together to analyze the testimony of one Holocaust survivor. Born in Bratislava at the end of World War I, Helen "Zippi" Spitzer Tichauer was sent to Auschwitz in 1942. One of the few early arrivals to survive the camp and the death marches, she met her future husband in a DP camp, and they moved to New York in the 1960s. Beginning in 1946, Zippi devoted many hours to talking with a small group of scholars about her life. Her wide-ranging interviews are uniquely suited to raise questions on the meaning and use of survivor testimony. What do we know today about the workings of a death camp? How willing are we to learn from the experiences of a survivor, and how much is our perception preconditioned by standardized images? What are the mechanisms, aims, and pitfalls of storytelling? Can survivor testimonies be understood properly without guidance from those who experienced the events? This book's new, multifaceted approach toward Zippi's unique story combined with the authors' analysis of key aspects of Holocaust memory, its forms and its functions, makes it a rewarding and fascinating read.

More books from Oxford University Press

Cover of the book Point Taken by
Cover of the book Living in the Crosshairs by
Cover of the book Brother's Keeper by
Cover of the book Operation Solomon by
Cover of the book Keeping Faith with the Constitution by
Cover of the book A Brief History of Mathematical Thought by
Cover of the book Exile, Diaspora, and Return by
Cover of the book Black Rights/White Wrongs by
Cover of the book Roger Sherman and the Creation of the American Republic by
Cover of the book Exchange-Traded Funds and the New Dynamics of Investing by
Cover of the book Unreliable Witnesses by
Cover of the book The Oxford Handbook of Leader-Member Exchange by
Cover of the book The North American Idea by
Cover of the book Ralph Ellison, Temporal Technologist by
Cover of the book Creolization: Oxford Bibliographies Online Research Guide by
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy