CTSJ 158 The Politics of Holocaust Memory
This course serves as an introduction to the field of cultural memory studies with particular attention to Holocaust memory and memorialization. After surveying theoretical approaches to individual and collective memory, we will explore how local and national contexts shape Holocaust memory, the function of Holocaust memory in postwar political discourses of the Cold War and decolonization, and the ambivalent globalization of Holocaust memory in the last few decades. We will consider Holocaust memorialization as a site of contestation and interrogate ensuing dilemmas of political responsibility, post-traumatic representation and reconciliation, and historical uniqueness. Throughout, we will reflect on and debate the political possibilities and limits of collective memory for confronting historical atrocities, enacting reparative justice, and preventing ongoing violence.
Credits
3 hours in class 9-12 hours of reading and writing