Rudolf hoess autobiography example

Posted on 3 April 2018 by Susanne Knittel
in: Type: Journal Article. Keywords: confession, Holocaust, memoir, representation, Rudolf Höss, and testimony.

In this article, Alan Rosen discusses the complicated position of Nazi memoirs and autobiographies using Rudolf Hoess’ “My Soul” (1947) as a case study.

Rudolf hoess autobiography example

Rosen follows a motif of confession throughout Hoess’ memoirs and uses it as a benchmark to discuss the position of the reader in relation to works written by perpetrators themselves. Rosen argues that in “My Soul” the reader is put in the position of the confessor, a position that is compromised earlier in the memoir by a priest who betrays Hoess’ trust in early childhood.

Rosen performs a compelling close-reading of “My Soul,” which serves as an interesting example of how to engage with perpetrator testimony from a literary studies perspective. In addition to his own response, Rosen discusses two other responses to “My Soul”.

The first is by Tzvetan