The Germans
Subtitle: absent nationality and the Holocaust
By: Yehuda Cohen
Series: Heritage, society and national identity in the European Union
Publisher: Sussex Academic Press
Published: 2010
Place of publication: Brighton [England]; Portland, Or
Language: eng
Number of pages: 191
ISBN-13: 9781845193584
Description: "Why were the Germans of all people the perpetrators of the Holocaust? This examination of in-group identity issues and the essence and unique development of Germans' national identity has direct relevance for those who seek an answer to this question. The answer lies in a 'triangle' of the fateful encounter of Germans and their problematic historical development, Nazi race theory, and the success of German Jewry." "The author focuses on weaknesses in German identity which led to the attraction of a blood-based race theory as a national ethos - a narrative of German racial superiority which was invalidated by the very presence and prominence of Jews in German culture and society. Eliminating this 'affront' was an existential issue for Germans that impelled a Judenrein Europe - whether by expulsion or extermination. Such a linkage has been overlooked because scholars have concentrated on the Holocaust as a Jewish experience, with anti-Semitism being deemed primarily responsible. But as this new interpretation of the historical circumstances forcefully indicates, it was the German national experience that was the prime mover in the Holocaust enterprise."--Jacket.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [181]-187) and index.
Table of contents: title: pt. 1. The state of Holocaust studies; title: An overview of Holocaust studies and its causes : is there a fundamental scholarly bias?; title: The roots : anti-Semitism or German theory of race?; title: pt. 2. Fateful triangle : German nationality, race theory, Jews; title: The first apex : the problematic nature of the German national identity; title: The second apex : race theory reexamined; title: The third apex : German Jews; title: The fateful triangle : some insights for the future; title: pt. 3. German identity in the post-Holocaust era; title: German self-image vis-à-vis the Holocaust; title: Post-war German structure, attitudes, and identity; title: Concluding chapter: Germans, the Holocaust, and German nationality : where do we go from here?