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Facing the Nazi Past examines how the communist East viewed the events of these years very differently from West Germany during the Cold War. Following the unification of Germany, these contrasting memories of the Third Reich have contributed to a new perspective on this period of German history.
Facing the Nazi Past explores the developments and debates that were symptomatic of this shift towards a more open confrontation with the past, such as:
* the image of resistance to Hitler in united Germany
* changes at concentration camp memorial sites since 1990
* the commemoration of 8 May 1945 in 1995
* how the revelations in Goldhagen's startling book Hitler's Willing Executioners triggered new discussion
* the plans for the construction of a Holocaust Memorial.
Anyone; students, scholars or interested readers, who are involved in the study of European history, will find this an enthralling and informative read.
List of contents
Chronology 1933–2000 Introduction: the inclusive picture 1 Concentration camp memorial sites 2 The ‘double past’ 3 Resistance 4 8 May 1945 in political discourse 5 Daniel Jonah Goldhagen and Victor Klemperer 6 The crimes of the Wehrmacht 7 The Walser-Bubis debate 8 The Holocaust Memorial 9 The past in the present
About the author
Bill Niven is Reader in German at the Nottingham Trent University. He has published widely on the ways in which West and East Germany viewed the history of the Third Reich. His recent publications include (with J.K.A.Thomaneck) Dividing and Uniting Germany (Routledge, 2000).
Summary
Facing the Nazi Past examines how the Communist East viewed the events of the 1930s and 40s very differently from the West during the Cold War and provides a compelling insight into the debate on the Third Reich in Germany since 1990.
