In Aversion and Erasure; Carolyn J. Dean offers a bold account of how the Holocaust's status as humanity's most terrible example of evil has shaped contemporary discourses about victims in the West. Popular and scholarly attention to the Holocaust has led some observers to conclude that a "surfeit of Jewish memory" is obscuring the suffering of other peoples. Dean explores the pervasive idea that suffering and trauma in the United States and Western Europe have become central to identity; with victims competing for recognition by displaying their collective wounds.She argues that this notion has never been examined systematically even though it now possesses the force of self-evidence. It developed in nascent form after World War II; when the near-annihilation of European Jewry began to transform patriotic mourning into a slogan of "Never Again": as the Holocaust demonstrated; all people might become victims because of their ethnicity; race; gender; or sexuality―because of who they are.The recent concept that suffering is central to identity and that Jewish suffering under Nazism is iconic of modern evil has dominated public discourse since the 1980s.Dean argues that we believe that the rational contestation of grievances in democratic societies is being replaced by the proclamation of injury and the desire to be a victim. Such dramatic and yet culturally powerful assertions; however; cast suspicion on victims and define their credibility in new ways that require analysis. Dean's latest book summons anyone concerned with human rights to recognize the impact of cultural ideals of "deserving" and "undeserving" victims on those who have suffered.
#986203 in Books Ingramcontent 2014-06-02Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.61 x .37 x 6.69l; .59 #File Name: 1499647107162 pagesEnemy in the Dark The Story of a Luftwaffe Night Fighter Pilot
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Joan BeavenLoved this book. So interesting to hear from the other side.3 of 4 people found the following review helpful. I would have liked to know why he went from the Me110 to ...By David RichWanted a lot more from the book than what was in it.I would have liked to know why he went from the Me110 to the Ju88;and what he thought were the pros and cons of each.I know it was written for his grandkids;but I wish it had been written for a mass audience.9 of 9 people found the following review helpful. German Night-FighterBy Alte AdlerAfter reading this book read "Dual Under the Stars" by Wilhelm Johnen; both authors having served in the same squadron. Johnen describes some of the same events but shows Spoden as a fun loving prankster. Oner one mission both his rear seat crew are celebraiting their Iron Crosses! Get both books; you can thank me later.
