Views of Violence: Representing the Second World War in German and European Museums and Memorials

Twenty-first-century views of historical violence have been immeasurably influenced by cultural representations of the Second World War. Within Europe, one of the key sites for such representation has been the vast array of museums and memorials that reflect contemporary ideas of war, the roles of soldiers and civilians, and the self-perception of those who remember. This volume takes a historical perspective on museums covering the Second World War and explores how these institutions came to define political contexts and cultures of public memory in Germany, across Europe, and throughout the world.

Jörg Echternkamp is Research Director at the Center for Military History and Social Sciences (ZMSBw), Potsdam, and Associate Professor of Modern History at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg.

Stephan Jaeger is a Professor of German Studies and the Head of the Department of German and Slavic Studies at the University of Manitoba. His research covers narratives, representations and memory of war in German and European museums, literature, film, and historiography. He is co-editor of the book series Museums and Narrative (with De Gruyter). His books include Performative Geschichtsschreibung (2011) and The Second World War in the Twenty-First-Century Museum: From Memory, Narrative, and Experience to Experientiality (2020).