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The Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures presents a talk with Diefenbaker Chair Prof. Dr. Werner Nell (MLU Halle-Wittenberg/¹ú²ú´«Ã½):

Preserving Memory in View of Diverse Historic Narratives?
The reception of Michael Rothberg ¹ú²ú´«Ã½ ’s Multidirectional Memory in contemporary German discourse on Holocaust memory.

The German translation of Michael Rothberg ¹ú²ú´«Ã½ ’s Multidirectional Memory: Remembering the Holocaust in the Age of Decolonization (2009) was published in 2021. The translation brought the extensive discussion of Rothberg ¹ú²ú´«Ã½ ’s study of essayistic and autobiographical texts into the German-speaking context. In Germany, a discussion ensued that reveals the relevance and specificities of Holocaust memory in German academic and public discourses in general and with respect to the reception of Rothberg ¹ú²ú´«Ã½ ’s book in particular. The talk examines the specific challenges of Rothberg ¹ú²ú´«Ã½ ’s claims in the context of Germany ¹ú²ú´«Ã½ ’s multi-layered societies: The post-colonial challenges discussed in Multidirectional Memory are informative for an ongoing importance of Holocaust memory in a society that includes various groups of migrants and complex Jewish-Muslim relations.

Prof. Dr. Werner Nell
John G. Diefenbaker Professor at ¹ú²ú´«Ã½
Chair in Comparative Literature at Martin-Luther-University in Halle, Germany
Adjunct Associate Professor at ¹ú²ú´«Ã½
Associate director of the Muhlenberg Center for American Studies (Halle)