“Learning about the Shoah Through Narrative Art and Visual Storytelling”—Transnational Memory in Graphic Literature
How can we teach about the Shoah at a time when fewer and fewer eyewitnesses are able to visit school classes and share their experiences? How can we spark students’ interest in events that took place decades ago? And, above all, which media should we use? Graphic novels offer one possibility; they combine text and images, make use of white space, and cater to the reading and visual needs of young people.
Project Description
Ever since Art Spiegelman’s comic *Maus*, graphic literature has also been addressing the atrocities of the Nazi era. Since the 1990s, a variety of graphic novels have been created that employ different narratives and present diverse perspectives on the Shoah and survival in its aftermath. In everyday school life, however, it is primarily novels that are read in German class, depicting the horror through the stories of individual lives. These are often outdated texts that students find “boring,” partly due to their formal aspects. Graphic novels can offer an alternative to existing literature on remembrance; they present survivors’ memories through both visuals and text. Through this engagement, media literacy, a critical approach to history and the present, and independent thinking are fostered. Research has shown the importance of survivors’ testimonies; the texts presented in our project capture the emotional impact of eyewitness accounts and invite students to engage in discussion.
Key Focus Areas of the Project
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Graphic storytelling about the Holocaust
Everything at a Glance
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Duration
Ongoing -
Research Area
Media and Culture -
Funding
Federal Agency for Civic Education, North Rhine-Westphalia
