Heimat, Nation, Fatherland
Subtitle: The German Sense of Belonging (German Life and Civilization)
Contributors: Jost Hermand (Editor); James Steakley (Editor)
Publisher: Peter Lang Publishing; Lang Publishing, Incorporated, Peter
Published: June 1996
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 230
ISBN-13: 9780820433738
Subjects: Culture; Germany - History; Berlin; Germany; Jews; National characteristics, Germ; National characteristics, German; Nationalism; Religion
Description: The terms Heimat, nation, or fatherland have had such controversial histories that they elude all attempts at a one-dimensional definition.

Over the course of modern German history, Heimat has come to mean virtually anything: a romantic nostalgia for preindustrial conditions; a conservative emphasis on various attributes; a feeling of ecological responsibility for a particular region; an aversion for the ugliness brought about by industry; a glorification of the German peasantry as the wellspring of national health; and much more.

The contributions to this volume critically examine selected aspects of these concepts, including eighteenth-century patriotism, attitudes of German-Americans, German-Jewish understanding of Heimat, the Heimatschutz movement, Nazi appropriations of history, the Heimat film, Heidegger's and Adorno's notions of Heimat, and German geopolitics.