Lessons of the Holocaust both summarizes and extends Marrus’ profession as a holocaust historian – one that he labels as “a never ending quest to get to the bottom of things” (Marrus, 2016, p. 174). In the book Lessons of the Holocaust, Michael R. Marrus discusses how the Holocaust, like all important events in history, must be learned, debated and interpreted for new generations. He argues, that there are no set lessons to be learned from the Holocaust since its meaning is not fixed. Marrus talks about historians and how they no longer converse about such issues, as they once used to, including the lessons of the French Revolution, fall of the Roman Empire, or even the lessons of the Canadian Confederation”. The lessons of the Holocaust are
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As the book progresses, the conversation of lessons shifts to Eastern Europe, particularly Poland. By offering different perspectives, Marrus is able to keep the topic consistent by discussing holocaust lessons through the eyes of historians but also placing a considerable emphasis on the survivors whose stories play the biggest role in determining these so-called “lessons”. In the book, Marrus considers the primary role as being assigned to the survivors. Noted as a “Jewish lesson” – the role imposed on these survivors to embody hope, resilience, and the human spirit (Marrus, 2016, p. 95). Although this may be true, survivors often tend to restraint in drawing lessons from extreme situations they experienced. Many of the ways in which survivors speak of their experiences may also be subject to a variation of influences. Marrus uses the specific example of the survivors living in Poland in the 90’s who while reflecting on their experiences during the holocaust, were aware of the hostile environment and the national suffering that had framed their knowledge of the event. However, this claim could have benefitted from explaining the role of communism and how the ending of that political system paved the way for holocaust survivors (in Poland) to ultimately come out and both share and relate their
As the book progresses, the conversation of lessons shifts to Eastern Europe, particularly Poland. By offering different perspectives, Marrus is able to keep the topic consistent by discussing holocaust lessons through the eyes of historians but also placing a considerable emphasis on the survivors whose stories play the biggest role in determining these so-called “lessons”. In the book, Marrus considers the primary role as being assigned to the survivors. Noted as a “Jewish lesson” – the role imposed on these survivors to embody hope, resilience, and the human spirit (Marrus, 2016, p. 95). Although this may be true, survivors often tend to restraint in drawing lessons from extreme situations they experienced. Many of the ways in which survivors speak of their experiences may also be subject to a variation of influences. Marrus uses the specific example of the survivors living in Poland in the 90’s who while reflecting on their experiences during the holocaust, were aware of the hostile environment and the national suffering that had framed their knowledge of the event. However, this claim could have benefitted from explaining the role of communism and how the ending of that political system paved the way for holocaust survivors (in Poland) to ultimately come out and both share and relate their