The Touch of the Past

The Touch of the Past: Remembrance, Learning, and Ethics

Roger I. Simon

THE TOUCH OF THE PAST

© Roger I. Simon, 2005. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. First published in 2005 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN™ 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010 and Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire, England RG21 6XS Companies and representatives throughout the world. PALGRAVE MACMILLAN is the global academic imprint of the Palgrave Macmillan division of St. Martin’s Press, LLC and of Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. Macmillan® is a registered trademark in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries. Palgrave is a registered trademark in the European Union and other countries.

ISBN 978-1-137-11524-9 (eBook) ISBN 978-1-4039-6747-3 978-1-4039-6747-3 ISBN 978-1-137-11524-9 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-137-11524-9 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Simon, Roger I. The touch of the past : remembrance, learning, and ethics / Roger I. Simon p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Public history. 2. Memory—Social aspects. 3. History—Philosophy. 4. History—Psychological aspects. 5. History—Study and teaching. I. Title. D16.163.S56 2005 907⬘.2—dc22 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Design by Newgen Imaging Systems (P) Ltd., Chennai, India. First edition: April 2005 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

2004057310

For Kim and Sharon

CONTENTS

Illustrations

ix

Credits

x

Introduction Remembering Otherwise: Civic Life and the Pedagogical Promise of Historical Memory

1

One

Two

The Pedagogy of Remembrance and the Counter-Commemoration of the Columbus Quincentenary

14

Pedagogy and the Call to Witnessing Marc Chagall’s White Crucifixion

32

Three Remembering Obligation: Witnessing Testimonies of Historical Trauma with Claudia Eppert Four

Five

Six

Seven

Beyond the Logic of Emblemization: Remembering and Learning from the Montréal Massacre with Sharon Rosenberg The Touch of the Past: The Pedagogical Significance of a Transactional Sphere of Public Memory

50

65

87

Witness as Study: The Difficult Inheritance of Testimony with Claudia Eppert, Mark Clamen, and Laura Beres

104

Remembrance as Praxis and the Ethics of the Interhuman with Mario Di Paolantonio and Mark Clamen

132

viii Eight

Contents The Audiovisual Supplement of Holocaust Survivor Video Testimony

156

Notes

173

References

182

Index

189

I L L UST R AT I O N S

1.1 Rodrigo Betancur and Elizabeth Dante, counter-Columbus Quincentenary poster 1.2 Theodore de Bry, engraving of Spanish atrocities in the context of the New World colonialization 1.3 William Snyder, painting—Columbus Landfall 1.4 John Vanderlyn, painting—the Landing of Columbus in San Salvador, October 12, 1942 1.5 Karen Atkinson, image (I) from installation 1.6 Karen Atkinson, image (II) from installation 2.1 Marc Chagall, painting—White Crucifixion 8.1 Video image sampling of interview with Rita Hilton 8.2 Mendel Grossman Photograph—Children selling sweets in the Lodz ghetto (I)

26 26 27 28 29 30 36 171 172

CREDITS

The book cover painting Sounds of Silence by Samuel Bak is reproduced courtesy of Pucker Gallery, Boston, MA. The counter-Columbus Quincentenary poster “Autodescubrimiento” by Rodrigo Bentancur and Elizabeth Dante is reproduced with the permission of Joanne Kowalski (for the Estate of Rodrigo Bentancur) and Elizabeth Dante. The engraving of Spanish atrocities in the context of New World colonization by Theodore de Bry is reproduced courtesy of the James Ford Bell Library, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota. The painting Columbus Landfall by William Snyder is reproduced courtesy of the family of William Snyder. The painting The Landing of Columbus in San Salvador, October 12, 1942 by John Vanderlyn is reproduced with the permission of the United States Capitol Historical Society. Images from Karen Atkinson’s art installation Remapping Tales of Desire, 1991 are reproduced with the permission of the artist. The painting White Crucifixion by Marc Chagall is reproduced with the permission of the Estate of Marc Chagall/SODRAC (Montreal) and the Art Institute of Chicago. The photograph of children selling sweets in the Lodz Ghetto is reproduced with the permission of the Ghetto Fighters’ House Museum, Israel. The poem “Wagon of Shoes” by Abraham Sutzkever is cited with the permission of the University of California Press. The poem “Flower” by Abraham Sutzkever is cited with the permission of Mosaic Press (Oakville, Ontario). Excerpt from the poem “Lithuania” by Myra Sklarew is cited with the permission of Azul Editions, 7804 Sycamore Drive, Falls Church,Virginia.

Credits

xi

Excerpts and video sampling of the testimony of Rita Hilton are cited and reproduced with the permission of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Excerpts from the video testimony of Paul Kagan are cited with the permission of the Canadian Jewish Congress Archives (Montréal). Excerpts from the video testimony of Zena G (T-1399), Beba L. (T-426), Samuel B. (T-618), and Mira B. (T-257) are cited with the permission of the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library. Excerpts from interviews appearing in the film “The Partisan’s of Vilna” are cited with the permission of Aviva Kempner, Ciesla Foundation.