From Mourning to Creativity in Generations of the Holocaust

The multiple losses that Holocaust survivors suffered are also mourned by the second and third generation, mourning people they never knew. This presentation reviews the stages of mourning losses: shock, denial, confrontation, feelings, and finally a search for meaning. What compels post-Holocaust generations to mourn unknown family members? What creative channels do they employ?

With this mourning comes creativity. Psychoanalyst George Pollock has taught us that creativity derives from mourning. Creative projects by Holocaust survivors and the second and third generation have recently mushroomed. The fields of literature, art, theater, film, music, and dance are saturated with expressions depicting Holocaust themes – survival in ghettoes and camps, hiding, posing as a non-Jew, being rescued. Heirs of the Holocaust tend to focus on family dynamics, seeking roots, and searching for meaning beyond persecution.

The burgeoning field of Holocaust survivor memoirs is an anomaly. Most are not professional writers, yet feel compelled to share their experiences in writing, not just giving an oral history. Each creative work is part of the mourning process and must be understood in the context of the writer, the photographer, the playwright, the dancer, the director, the filmmaker, the musician, the dancer. Some works are authentic in their portrayal of Jews and their survival of the Shoah, while others convey stereotypes. Generations of the Holocaust are sometimes caught between sharing an authentic story and one that will sell to global mass audiences. The search for meaning is an ongoing feeling when confronting the persecution of one’s family.