Language:
German
Year of publication:
1997
Titel der Quelle:
German History
Angaben zur Quelle:
15,1 (1997) 80-91
Keywords:
Goldhagen, Daniel Jonah.
;
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) Influence
;
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) Historiography
Abstract:
Contends that a book such as Goldhagen's "Hitler's Willing Executioners" could cause such a stir, in part, because scholars in Germany and other countries have been silent on many crucial aspects of the Holocaust. For this reason his book must not be ignored; rather, its defects must be discussed. Goldhagen's approach is simplistic and mono-causal - his one and comprehensive explanation of the Holocaust is the demonic antisemitism of the German people. Presenting the Holocaust as a unique event, he avoids comparisons and does not mention antisemitism in countries other than Germany, other genocides in this century, or even the fact that Jews were not the only victims of the Nazis. He also ignores a great number of scholarly works on this issue. Concludes that Goldhagen has done great damage to the study of the Holocaust; the negative reaction to his book in Germany makes serious discussion of many unresolved problems of German history which his book aroused impossible. See the response by Michael Pinto-Duschinsky [in "German History" 16 (1998) 397-411], in which he states that Goldhagen rejects German collective guilt and does discuss antisemitism in other countries and Nazi persecution of other groups; Wehler's criticism ignores what is actually in Goldhagen's book.
Description / Table of Contents:
Pinto-Duschinsky, Michael. Wehler on "Hitler's Willing Executioners"; a comment. Ibid. 16,3 (1998) 397-411.
Note:
On Daniel J. Goldhagen, "Hitler's Willing Executioners; Ordinary Germans and the Holocaust" (1996).
,
Appeared also in "Unwilling Germans? The Goldhagen Debate" (1998). An abridged German version appeared in "Die Zeit" (24 May 1996).
URL:
Locate this publication in Israeli libraries
Permalink
