SOCI 410

Remembering the Holocaust

This course focuses on what it means to "remember" the Holocaust, for those who were witnesses and for those who seek to learn of it and remember it once the witnesses are gone. We consider how different people remember these events, from survivors to bystanders, from today's historians and sociologists, to tomorrow's students. We look at issues of representation and compare national histories of the Holocaust to the different ways the story of the Holocaust is told in films, in fiction, in memoirs, among scholars and in national memory. This capstone provides an opportunity for students to consider diverse perspectives (historical, sociological, psychological and political) on the Holocaust. We also connect our study of the Holocaust, which is the paradigm of modern genocide, with more recent events and genocides in the world today to enhance our understanding of the critical questions the Holocaust has for the 21st century. The sociological study of the Holocaust is interesting and useful for students in a range of majors other than sociology, including biology, education, history, international relations, political science, philosophy, religion, management, economics, and women's studies.