Key Problems of the Jewish History and Culture - Holocaust 2900-JSM-WPHIKZ-ŁKRZ

“At first sight the destruction of the Jews may have the appearance of an indivisible, monolithic, and impenetrable event,” wrote Raul Hilberg, one of the pioneers of Holocaust Studies. He also noticed that upon closer observation one begins to see a sequence of events. Through reading and discussing selected academic works pertaining to the history of the Holocaust, the course invites the participants to deepen their knowledge and understanding of the complexity of the Holocaust. The course is fully based on secondary literature reading and aims at introducing students to core problems addressed by the historiography of the Holocaust. While selecting reading material, special attention has been paid to texts focusing on the Holocaust in the General Government and texts that initiated scholarly and media debates.

This course is funded by the Claims Conference University Partnership Program in Holocaust Studies.

Course coordinators

Marzena Sarem
Jan Wojtczuk

Type of course

elective courses

Mode

Classroom

Prerequisites (description)

Willingness to participate in the course and to learn, systematic preparation for the class.

Learning outcomes

Course participants become familiar with selected historical works on the history of the Holocaust. Students enhance their skills of independent and critical reading of academic texts and acquire basic knowledge of the history of the Holocaust.

Assessment criteria

attendance, preparation for the class (reading assigned texts), participation in classroom discussions, individual assignments (reaction papers)

Bibliography

Detailed list of topics and the reading list will be announced at the beginning of the semester.