Holocaust Memorial Day: The Question of Cultural Trauma

The Holocaust, which we recall especially around Holocaust Memorial Day, is often understood as a trauma for the survivors, but also for culture as a whole. What does this wider sense of trauma mean and how is it represented in art, literature and film? What risks or complications are there in thinking about trauma in these cultural terms? Robert Eaglestone explores how, as we think about recalling the Holocaust in years to come, these questions take on a powerful urgency.

Robert Eaglestone is Professor of Contemporary Literature and Thought at Royal Holloway, University of London. He works on contemporary literature and literary theory, contemporary philosophy and on Holocaust and Genocide studies. He is a member of Royal Holloway’s Holocaust Research Centre. He is the author of six books, including Ethical Criticism (1997), The Holocaust and the Postmodern (2004) and The Broken Voice: reading Post-Holocaust Literature (2017). He is the editor or co-editor of seven more, including Teaching Holocaust Literature and Film (2008) and The Future of Trauma Theory (2013). His work has been translated into five languages. He is a National Teaching Fellow.