Is Experiencing History Possible? Between “Dark Tourism” and “the Holocaust Industry:” The Case of Terezín [Czy doświadczanie historii jest możliwe? Między “ciemną turystyką” a “przedsiębiorstwem Holokaust”. Przypadek Terezína]
Is Experiencing History Possible? Between “Dark Tourism” and “the Holocaust Industry:” The Case of Terezín

Summary/Abstract: The article focuses on the representation of Terezín (Theresienstadt) concentration camp in contemporary Czech literary, historical, and educational sources. We should treat the ways of presenting Terezín in Czech public space as a beginning of the discussion about the popular, mass need for “adapting” memory about past experiences to the abilities of a new recipient. The basis for the following considerations is the 2009 novel by Jáchym Topol, The Devil’s Workshop (original title: Chladnou zemí), that presents the process of the revitalization of Terezín concentration camp, which seems to be another stage of a theatricalization or reconstruction of memory. The fundamental question is: How far is it from the Topol’s utopian vision to the actual reality, full of commercialized or institutionalized memory?

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