Beyond the Nation-State: Theoretical Perspectives on Global Holocaust Memory

In August 2019, I had the privilege of participating in the Bergen-Belsen International Summer School (BBISS) held at the Bergen-Belsen Memorial (Gedenkstätte Bergen-Belsen) in Germany from 3–14 August 2019. The programme brought together scholars and researchers from different parts of the world to reflect on the history, representation, and contemporary significance of Holocaust memory.

I was selected as one of nineteen participants from a pool of roughly one hundred shortlisted applicants from across the globe. The group was predominantly composed of scholars from Europe and the United States, along with one participant from Israel and two from India. My participation was made possible through the Lower Saxony Memorial Grant, awarded by the Stiftung niedersächsische Gedenkstätten (Lower Saxony Memorials Foundation). The grant covered my international travel, accommodation, and daily expenses, enabling scholars from outside Europe to engage directly with the memorial and the programme’s academic activities. The summer school took place at the Bergen-Belsen Memorial in Lower Saxony, a site that remains central to international Holocaust remembrance and education.

The summer school combined lectures, workshops, archival sessions, and guided tours, creating an intensive environment for reflection and discussion. Participants visited the memorial grounds, explored the permanent exhibition, and engaged with scholars working at the intersection of Holocaust studies, memory studies, and cultural history. The programme also included workshops on topics such as digital strategies of remembrance, transnational memory, and the role of popular culture in shaping historical memory. In another blog post, I have offered a detailed account of the events at the summer school.

Memory Beyond National Boundaries

One of the central themes of the summer school was the growing recognition that memory increasingly operates beyond the boundaries of the nation-state. Traditional models of remembrance often assumed that historical memory was primarily organized within national frameworks. However, contemporary scholarship emphasizes that memories circulate across borders through migration, media, and global communication networks.

Aleida Assmann describes this development as a “transnational turn” in memory studies, which encourages scholars to rethink national narratives in light of global interconnectedness. According to Assmann, transnational memory opens possibilities for “new forms of belonging, solidarity and cultural identification in a world characterised by migration and entangled pasts.”

In this context, Holocaust memory has become one of the most powerful examples of transnational remembrance. While the Holocaust occurred primarily in Europe, its memory now forms part of a global moral and cultural framework through which societies reflect on genocide, human rights, and historical responsibility.

Travelling Memory and Cultural Circulation

Closely related to the idea of transnational memory is the concept of “travelling memory.” Astrid Erll uses this term to describe the ways in which memories move across cultures through media, institutions, and cultural exchange. The Holocaust provides a particularly striking example of this phenomenon. Its memory circulates globally through films, literature, museums, educational programmes, and digital media. These cultural forms shape how different societies understand the historical event and its contemporary significance.

At the same time, this circulation of memory raises difficult questions. Who has the authority to represent traumatic pasts? How should the Holocaust be depicted in contemporary culture? And how can representation balance historical accuracy with ethical responsibility?

These questions formed an important part of the discussions during the summer school.

Representation and the Ethics of Holocaust Memory

Holocaust representation remains one of the most debated issues in contemporary cultural and historical scholarship. As Christine Berberich observes, discussions about the Holocaust often revolve around what forms of representation are considered acceptable and who has the authority to produce them.

The challenge lies in maintaining respect for the historical gravity of the Holocaust while ensuring that new generations remain engaged with its memory. Cultural representations—whether in film, literature, or digital media—play an important role in this process. Yet they also provoke debate about whether certain forms of representation risk trivializing or commodifying historical trauma.

These tensions were repeatedly highlighted during the workshops and discussions at Bergen-Belsen.

Digital Memory and the Twenty-First Century

Another important topic explored during the programme was the impact of digital media on Holocaust memory. The digital age has transformed how historical knowledge is preserved and circulated. Museums and memorial institutions increasingly rely on digital platforms to reach international audiences and expand access to archives and testimonies.

At the same time, digital culture introduces new challenges. Wulf Kansteiner notes that debates about Holocaust representation now extend into digital environments such as video games and online media, where questions of ethical representation and public responsibility become particularly complex.

The discussions during the summer school highlighted both the possibilities and the limitations of digital memory. While digital media can democratize access to historical knowledge, they also raise concerns about misinformation, sensationalism, and the erosion of historical context.

Linking Local Sites and Global Memory

Despite the global circulation of Holocaust memory, the summer school also demonstrated the continued importance of specific historical locations. Sites such as Bergen-Belsen anchor memory in concrete places where historical events occurred.

At the same time, scholars increasingly emphasize the interaction between local remembrance and transnational memory networks. Studies of European memory politics show that remembrance practices are shaped through connections between local institutions, national narratives, and international discourses.

Bergen-Belsen exemplifies this dynamic relationship. As a historical site, it bears witness to the suffering of thousands of victims. Yet as a memorial and research centre, it also functions as an international space for education, dialogue, and scholarly exchange.

From Summer School to Scholarly Research

For me personally, participating in the Bergen-Belsen International Summer School proved to be more than a short academic programme. The discussions on Holocaust memory, transnational remembrance, and cultural representation continued to influence my research in the years that followed.

One of the outcomes of this intellectual engagement was the edited volume Holocaust vs. Popular Culture (Routledge, 2023), which I co-edited. The book examines the ongoing debate surrounding the representation of the Holocaust in popular culture. At the centre of this debate lies a tension between two positions: the argument that the Holocaust and popular culture are fundamentally incompatible, and the claim that popular culture can contribute to the globalization or universalization of Holocaust memory. While acknowledging the concerns raised by the anti-representation argument, the volume explores how a productive understanding of “Holocaust popular culture” can expand the scope of Holocaust studies and cultural studies within a transnational framework. The collection examines diverse cultural forms—including literature, film, television, music, dance, social media, comics, graphic novels, videogames, advertisements, and museums—and analyses how Holocaust memory circulates across different genres, nations, and generations.

Looking back, the Bergen-Belsen Summer School was an important moment in shaping these research interests. The conversations that began there—about memory, representation, and the ethics of cultural remembrance—continue to inform my scholarly work today.

References

Assmann, Aleida. “Transnational Memories.” European Review, vol. 22, no. 4, 2014, pp.

546–556.

Berberich, Christine. “The Holocaust in Contemporary Culture.” Holocaust Studies, vol.

25., nos. 1-2, 2019, pp. 1-11.

Erll, Astrid. “Travelling Memory.” Parallax, vol. 17, no. 4, 2011, pp. 4–18.

Kansteiner, Wulf. “The Holocaust in the Twenty-First Century: Digital Anxiety,

Transnational Cosmopolitanism, and Never Again Genocide Without Memory.” Digital Memory Studies, edited by Andrew Hoskins, Routledge, 2017, pp. 110-140.

Seigel, Micol. “Beyond Compare: Comparative Method after the Transnational Turn.”

Radical History Review, no. 91, Winter 2005, pp. 62–90.

Sierp, Aline, and Jenny Wüstenberg. “Linking the Local and the Transnational:

Rethinking Memory Politics in Europe.” Journal of Contemporary European Studies, vol. 23, no.3, 2015, pp. 321–329.

Dr. Mahitosh Mandal is a researcher in Literary and Cultural Studies. His work explores the intersections of psychoanalysis, trauma, caste, and cultural memory.