Menorah Review (No. 81, Summer/Fall, 2014)

Books in Brief: New and Notable -- candelabra gold -- Education: Yeshivah style -- Moreshet: From the Sources -- Mysteries of the Books of Job: From Elihu to Elie Wiesel -- Two Nations Are In Your Womb (Gen 25:23) -- When Rhetoric Dominates The Message -- Zacho

Making meaning and meaning making: memory, postmemory and narrative in Holocaust literature

This paper explores links between narration and memory in Holocaust literature and examines ways in which individuals construct memory and postmemory. Based on the premise that ‘All authors mediate reality through their writing...’ and taking into consideration that what we remember and how we remember is likely to have a significant impact on the narratives that we construct, this article considers the reliability of memory. It argues that whilst there is, at times, a blurring of boundaries between fact and fiction in Holocaust literature, this has little or no impact on the validity and authenticity of the narratives. In an attempt to address these issues more fully, this paper explores the notions of making meaning and meaning making, whilst considering the effects of positionality, time and trauma on memory. Key texts referred to in this discussion include Night (1958) by Elie Wiesel, All Rivers Run to the Sea (1996) by Elie Wiesel, In My Brother’s Shadow (2005) by Uwe Timm and The Dark Room (2001) by Rachel Seiffert. These texts have been chosen in order to highlight the subjectivity of memory and postmemory and to demonstrate the role that narrative plays in their construction and representation

The Spiritual and Secular Effects of the Holocaust

My research paper focused on the topic of the Holocaust, and how this tragic event in history had a lasting effect, not only on the victims, but on future generations as well. My paper focused on two autobiographies, “Night,” and “After Long Silence” written by Elie Wiesel and Helen Fremont respectively, each of which portray a different perspective on the Holocaust and the significance it had in the peoples’ lives. Using these two autobiographies, as well as a number of articles referencing the Holocaust, I portrayed how this horrible period of history shaped many peoples\u27 lives, both secularly and spiritually

Elie Wiesel Photograph with Signature

Image of Elie Wiesel with book in hand; handwritten note, \u27For Paul Lorenzen - with best wishes Elie Wiesel\u27 in blue ink.https://digital.kenyon.edu/bulmash/2327/thumbnail.jp

Religion and Violence: Thinking Again About the Link

This article is a contribution to a Special Issue on religion and genocide edited by Dr. Steven Jacobs. The aim of the article is to suggest a dimension of research not often considered to be part of the discussion. Because genocidal events have happened in conjunction with religious holidays, the article suggests that researchers must consider the role that worship and the texts of worship play in shaping the context for genocide

Book Report of Night by Elie Wiesel

Penulisan tugas akhir “Bedah Buku Night karya Elie Wiesel” bertujuan untuk mengungkap simbol yang banyak digunakan oleh pengarang yang bertujuan untuk mewakili perasaan yang ingin disampaikan oleh pengarang yang tidak dijabarkan. Selain itu, tugas akhir ini juga menilai kelebihan dan kekurangan dari novel Night. Penulis memutuskan untuk membedah novel Night karena sebagai karya sastra novel ini merupakan sebuah karya sastra yang mengandung unsur sejarah sehingga bisa berperan ganda sebagai penyegar kalbu dan sumber wawasan. Penulis menggunakan metode membaca cermat untuk menemukan simbol, kelebihan dan kekurangan dari novel ini. Setelah dianalisis ditemukan bahwa ada beberapa simbol, yang sebagian merupakan simbol di agama Yahudi, yang digunakan untuk lebih menekankan penderitaan dari para korban Holocaust yang segala hak mereka telah dirampas oleh Nazi. Novel ini mempunyai kelebihan dalam temanya yaitu mempunyai tema tentang kejadian yang besar dan terkenal sehingga bisa dijadikan sebagai salah satu referensi kesejarahan yang didukung dengan penggunaan bahasa denotatif yang tidak ambigu. Kedekatan batin antara Eliezer dan ayahnya yang berkembang di kamp konsentrasi juga merupakan nilai lebih dari novel ini. Namun, hal yang menyulitkan dalam mendalami novel ini adalah beberapa istilah agama Yahudi dan bahasa Jerman sehingga diperlukan referensi lain untuk memahaminya. Dari segi penokohan, penulis menganggap bahwa tokoh Eliezer mempunyai karakter yang jauh lebih dewasa dan tidak sesuai dengan umurnya yang sebenarnya yaitu 15 tahun

Reconciling State Interests with International Responsibilities: Asylum in North America and Western Europe

Elie Wiesel, Nobel Prize Winning writer: ‘Refugees are persons doomed to live in divided world between countries in which they cannot live and countries which they may not enter.' ‘US Committee for Refugees, 1997 World Refugee Survey: Never was asylun in more doubt in more places than in 1996 (but) ... the challenge to asylum did not start in 1996. The principle of asylum has been eroding for years. And the erosion did not start in Africa. It started in Europe and United States.

Littérature de l’holocauste et éthique de la lecture

La littérature de l'holocauste pose problème à la critique éthique dans la mesure où celle-ci cherche le plus souvent à affirmer la pertinence des valeurs que l'holocauste remet en question. Cet article examine des textes de Charlotte Delbo, Elie Wiesel et Jorge Semprun qui suggèrent que la rencontre avec l'holocauste est impossible pour les survivants et leurs lecteurs ; l'événement est trop traumatisant pour être intégré à l'expérience du sujet et la connaissance qu'il offre est décrite comme inutile ou dangereuse. Enfin, la notion d'" enseignement " est empruntée à la pensée de Levinas pour esquisser une façon d'aborder la littérature de l'holocauste qui ne consisterait pas à se l'approprier du point de vue des valeurs du lecteur.Holocaust literature poses a particular problem for ethical criticism in that the latter typically endeavours to affirm the pertinence of values which the Holocaust calls into question. This article examines texts by Charlotte Delbo, Elie Wiesel and Jorge Semprun which suggest that the encounter with the Holocaust is impossible for both survivors and readers ; it is too traumatic to be integrated into the experience of the subject and the knowledge it offers is described as either useless or dangerous. Finally, Levinas's notion of "teaching" is used to sketch a way of reading Holocaust literature which might not entail appropriating it from the perspective of the reader's established values