Language:
English
Year of publication:
1996
Titel der Quelle:
Jewish Social Studies
Angaben zur Quelle:
2,2 (1996) 1-20
Keywords:
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) Influence
Abstract:
The topic of revenge is virtually absent in postwar Jewish discourse on the Holocaust. It is not because no act of revenge against the perpetrators of genocide ever occurred. There were such attempts on the part of Jewish survivors, such as those undertaken by the "Revenge Group" (also called DIN) led by Abba Kovner, which operated in 1946 in Germany, and other acts by organized Jewish groups and individuals. Besides the few acts of overt revenge, there have been many instances of revenge in symbolic, displaced forms: many Jews refuse to buy German goods or to travel to Germany; the music of Wagner is not performed in Israel; there was strong opposition to accepting the German reparations agreed upon with Israel in 1952. The very concept of revenge is morally problematic. It is incompatible with the principles of justice and forgiveness, which is one reason for the silence about it in Holocaust discourse. However, revenge, even in symbolic form, motivates and fosters the memory of the Holocaust.
Note:
Another version appeared in his "The Future of the Holocaust" (1999). Appeared in Hungarian as "A holokauszt emlékezete és a bosszú: a múlt jelenléte" in "Múlt és Jövő" 1 (2006) 12-23.
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