Over sixty years, various groups in Europe have developed interpretations of the Second World War and the role of their countries in it, tailored to their political and psychological needs. This dispute over the past is expressed in diverse forms such as film, memoirs, lawsuits, and schoolbooks.
This collection offers a comparative case study of memories of the Second World War in seven European countries: France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, Italy, and the USSR (Russia). The contributions are written by specialists from various disciplines, including history, literature, political science, psychology, and sociology. Country by country, they illuminate the specific postwar memories of the war in essays written especially for this work.
By using similar analytical frameworks, the countries are made insightful and comparable to each other. The extensive introduction discusses the importance of these European memories, while the conclusion analyzes the implications for memory studies. An important insight is that the period between the late 1960s and mid-1980s shows the most profound change in the memory policies of all countries.
Although there are common themes, it turns out that Europeans understand the Second World War primarily from national reference frames that differ greatly. These memories are crucial for the democratization of Central and Eastern Europe and the strengthening of the European Union. This book clarifies how these memories are formed and institutionalized.
Contributors
Claudio Fogu, Richard J. Golsan, Wulf Kansteiner, Richard Ned Lebow, Regula Ludi, Annamaria Orla-Bukowska, Heidemarie Uhl, Thomas C. Wolfe.
Language and Application
- Language: Dutch
- Suitable for: education, academic research, and self-study
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