Addicted to the Holocaust – Bernice Eisenstein’s Ways of Coping with Troublesome Memories in I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors
In her I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors published in Canada in 2006, Bernice Eistenstein undertakes an attempt to cope with the inherited memories of the Holocaust. As a child of the Holocaust survivors, she tries to deal with the trauma her parents kept experiencing years after WWII had finishe...
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| Language: | English |
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Sciendo
2015-12-01
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| Series: | Studia Anglica Posnaniensia |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1515/stap-2015-0022 |
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doaj-275b4f6cf68b44609e6e94de481a8eed2021-09-05T14:00:47ZengSciendoStudia Anglica Posnaniensia0081-62722082-51022015-12-01502-3395010.1515/stap-2015-0022stap-2015-0022Addicted to the Holocaust – Bernice Eisenstein’s Ways of Coping with Troublesome Memories in I Was a Child of Holocaust SurvivorsDrewniak Dagmara0Faculty of English, Adam Mickiewicz University in PoznańIn her I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors published in Canada in 2006, Bernice Eistenstein undertakes an attempt to cope with the inherited memories of the Holocaust. As a child of the Holocaust survivors, she tries to deal with the trauma her parents kept experiencing years after WWII had finished. Eisenstein became infected with the suffering and felt it inescapable. Eisenstein’s text, which is one of the first Jewish-Canadian graphic memoirs, appears to represent the voice of the children of Holocaust survivors not only owing to its verbal dimension, but also due to the drawings incorporated into the text. Therefore, the text becomes a combination of a memoir, a family story, a philosophical treatise and a comic strip, which all prove unique and enrich the discussion on the Holocaust in literature. For these reasons, the aim of this article is to analyze the ways in which Eisenstein deals with her postmemory, to use Marianne Hirsch’s term (1997 [2002]), as well as her addiction to the Holocaust memories. As a result of this addiction, the legacy of her postmemory is both unwanted and desired and constitutes Bernice Eisenstein’s identity as the eponymous child of Holocaust survivors.https://doi.org/10.1515/stap-2015-0022bernice eisensteini was a child of holocaust survivorsgraphic memoirjewish- canadian literaturepostmemorypost-holocaust literaturelife writing |
| collection |
DOAJ |
| language |
English |
| format |
Article |
| sources |
DOAJ |
| author |
Drewniak Dagmara |
| spellingShingle |
Drewniak Dagmara Addicted to the Holocaust – Bernice Eisenstein’s Ways of Coping with Troublesome Memories in I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors Studia Anglica Posnaniensia bernice eisenstein i was a child of holocaust survivors graphic memoir jewish- canadian literature postmemory post-holocaust literature life writing |
| author_facet |
Drewniak Dagmara |
| author_sort |
Drewniak Dagmara |
| title |
Addicted to the Holocaust – Bernice Eisenstein’s Ways of Coping with Troublesome Memories in I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors |
| title_short |
Addicted to the Holocaust – Bernice Eisenstein’s Ways of Coping with Troublesome Memories in I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors |
| title_full |
Addicted to the Holocaust – Bernice Eisenstein’s Ways of Coping with Troublesome Memories in I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors |
| title_fullStr |
Addicted to the Holocaust – Bernice Eisenstein’s Ways of Coping with Troublesome Memories in I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Addicted to the Holocaust – Bernice Eisenstein’s Ways of Coping with Troublesome Memories in I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors |
| title_sort |
addicted to the holocaust – bernice eisenstein’s ways of coping with troublesome memories in i was a child of holocaust survivors |
| publisher |
Sciendo |
| series |
Studia Anglica Posnaniensia |
| issn |
0081-6272 2082-5102 |
| publishDate |
2015-12-01 |
| description |
In her I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors published in Canada in 2006, Bernice Eistenstein undertakes an attempt to cope with the inherited memories of the Holocaust. As a child of the Holocaust survivors, she tries to deal with the trauma her parents kept experiencing years after WWII had finished. Eisenstein became infected with the suffering and felt it inescapable. Eisenstein’s text, which is one of the first Jewish-Canadian graphic memoirs, appears to represent the voice of the children of Holocaust survivors not only owing to its verbal dimension, but also due to the drawings incorporated into the text. Therefore, the text becomes a combination of a memoir, a family story, a philosophical treatise and a comic strip, which all prove unique and enrich the discussion on the Holocaust in literature. For these reasons, the aim of this article is to analyze the ways in which Eisenstein deals with her postmemory, to use Marianne Hirsch’s term (1997 [2002]), as well as her addiction to the Holocaust memories. As a result of this addiction, the legacy of her postmemory is both unwanted and desired and constitutes Bernice Eisenstein’s identity as the eponymous child of Holocaust survivors. |
| topic |
bernice eisenstein i was a child of holocaust survivors graphic memoir jewish- canadian literature postmemory post-holocaust literature life writing |
| url |
https://doi.org/10.1515/stap-2015-0022 |
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