Language:
English
Year of publication:
2000
Titel der Quelle:
Western Folklore
Angaben zur Quelle:
59,1 (2000) 1-31
Keywords:
Klemperer, Victor,
;
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) Personal narratives
;
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) History
;
Linguistics
;
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)
Abstract:
Presented as the 2000 Archer Taylor Memorial Lecture. Analyzes the style of Klemperer's diaries, and focuses on his view of the Nazi use of language (e.g. Goebbels' empty propaganda phrases and Hitler's transformation of proverbs like "an eye for an eye" from a cliché into genocide). also discusses the positive use of proverbs by Klemperer himself to avoid abstraction and convey "linguistic and factual authenticity". Examples of the expressiveness of such proverbs are "it can cost your head", to stress the life and death situation of the Jews under Nazism, and "keep your head up", used by decent Germans to give a word of encouragement to Jews like Klemperer. The diarist challenges the Nazis' claim to speak for the people by transforming the proverb "vox populi" into "voces populi". Epitomizes Klemperer's attitude toward language in the modified proverb used by him, "in lingua veritas".
Note:
Appeared also in "Language, Poetry, and Memory" (2004) 1-32.
URL:
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