Abstract
In this article I critically reflect on my experience with Holocaust memorials in Eastern Germany. When designing a memorial, there are many important questions for those building the memorial to consider. These questions include: What historical or social factors have contributed to the felt need for the creation of a memorial? What kind of thoughts, reactions, or emotional responses will the memorial evoke within the observer? Or, will the memorial provide the opportunity for physical or emotional interaction or a new understanding that is meaningful? In this analysis, I provide some historical background for the creation of memorials in East Germany and the desire to preserve and learn from the past. I then describe my personal experiences with and reactions to some of these memorials, and end with a cautionary reflection from East Germany about how public memory can be abused. Based on these experiences, I conclude that the best way to memorialize past atrocities is for designers to include a diversity of responses that are able to engage people in multiple ways, including cognitive and abstract representations of the event or people being memorialized.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Cox, Brady Kal
(2016)
"A Personal Reflection on the Nature and Value of Public Memory in Holocaust Memorials,"
Conversations: A Graduate Student Journal of the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Theology: Vol. 3:
No.
1, Article 1.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/conversations/vol3/iss1/1
