Roundtable: World War II and Holocaust Comics, Perpetrators, and Education

In this roundtable conversation, historians Christine Gundermann, Ewa Stańczyk, and Kees Ribbens discuss various aspects of World War II and Holocaust comics, including the (historical) depiction of perpetrators, the use of victim sources, and narrative structures. Different national contexts of graphic narratives are considered, and the contributors discuss how national frames and politics of memory affect the content and reception of World War II and Holocaust comics. Furthermore, attention is given to the educational frameworks in which these comics can be distributed and taught. Graphic narratives that are discussed include, among others, Art Spiegelman’s Maus, Nora Krug’s Belonging, and Episodes from Auschwitz by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum. Other sources are also considered, including the drawings by Holocaust survivor Kalman Landau.