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Figurations of Suffering in Concentration Camp Testimony

Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review

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Figurations of Suffering in Concentration Camp Testimony. / O'Donoghue, Samuel.
In: Comparative Literature Studies, Vol. 58, No. 4, 25.10.2021, p. 807-835.

Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review

Harvard

O'Donoghue, S 2021, 'Figurations of Suffering in Concentration Camp Testimony', Comparative Literature Studies, vol. 58, no. 4, pp. 807-835. <https://muse.jhu.edu/article/820442>

APA

O'Donoghue, S. (2021). Figurations of Suffering in Concentration Camp Testimony. Comparative Literature Studies, 58(4), 807-835. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/820442

Vancouver

O'Donoghue S. Figurations of Suffering in Concentration Camp Testimony. Comparative Literature Studies. 2021 Oct 25;58(4):807-835.

Author

O'Donoghue, Samuel. / Figurations of Suffering in Concentration Camp Testimony. In: Comparative Literature Studies. 2021 ; Vol. 58, No. 4. pp. 807-835.

Bibtex

@article{167b6acdebb948dfbe3f290afb07ff66,
title = "Figurations of Suffering in Concentration Camp Testimony",
abstract = "This article offers a close reading of the figurative language used to represent suffering in literary testimonies of the Nazi concentration camps. It begins with an overview of the debate over the legitimacy of figurative language in representations of the Holocaust and considers the arguments against metaphor by scholars in the field of pain research and Holocaust studies. Bringing into dialogue the disciplines of pain studies and Holocaust studies, the article advances the claim that figurative language is an effective means of expressing suffering and that an analysis of this language is valuable for understanding the experiences of the victims of Nazism. The article subsequently presents a comparative analysis of Se questo {\`e} un uomo (1947) by Primo Levi, Le grand voyage (1963) by Jorge Sempr{\'u}n, and K.L. Reich (1963) by Joaquim Amat-Piniella. It identifies two patterns in the representation of suffering by these author-survivors: first, the use of zoomorphic metaphors to describe bodily pain and, second, the depiction of anthropomorphized landscapes to portray psychological anguish.",
keywords = "Nazi concentration camps, testimony, Holocaust studies, pain studies, animal metaphors, natural landscapes",
author = "Samuel O'Donoghue",
year = "2021",
month = oct,
day = "25",
language = "English",
volume = "58",
pages = "807--835",
journal = "Comparative Literature Studies",
issn = "0010-4132",
publisher = "Penn State University Press",
number = "4",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - Figurations of Suffering in Concentration Camp Testimony

AU - O'Donoghue, Samuel

PY - 2021/10/25

Y1 - 2021/10/25

N2 - This article offers a close reading of the figurative language used to represent suffering in literary testimonies of the Nazi concentration camps. It begins with an overview of the debate over the legitimacy of figurative language in representations of the Holocaust and considers the arguments against metaphor by scholars in the field of pain research and Holocaust studies. Bringing into dialogue the disciplines of pain studies and Holocaust studies, the article advances the claim that figurative language is an effective means of expressing suffering and that an analysis of this language is valuable for understanding the experiences of the victims of Nazism. The article subsequently presents a comparative analysis of Se questo è un uomo (1947) by Primo Levi, Le grand voyage (1963) by Jorge Semprún, and K.L. Reich (1963) by Joaquim Amat-Piniella. It identifies two patterns in the representation of suffering by these author-survivors: first, the use of zoomorphic metaphors to describe bodily pain and, second, the depiction of anthropomorphized landscapes to portray psychological anguish.

AB - This article offers a close reading of the figurative language used to represent suffering in literary testimonies of the Nazi concentration camps. It begins with an overview of the debate over the legitimacy of figurative language in representations of the Holocaust and considers the arguments against metaphor by scholars in the field of pain research and Holocaust studies. Bringing into dialogue the disciplines of pain studies and Holocaust studies, the article advances the claim that figurative language is an effective means of expressing suffering and that an analysis of this language is valuable for understanding the experiences of the victims of Nazism. The article subsequently presents a comparative analysis of Se questo è un uomo (1947) by Primo Levi, Le grand voyage (1963) by Jorge Semprún, and K.L. Reich (1963) by Joaquim Amat-Piniella. It identifies two patterns in the representation of suffering by these author-survivors: first, the use of zoomorphic metaphors to describe bodily pain and, second, the depiction of anthropomorphized landscapes to portray psychological anguish.

KW - Nazi concentration camps

KW - testimony

KW - Holocaust studies

KW - pain studies

KW - animal metaphors

KW - natural landscapes

M3 - Journal article

VL - 58

SP - 807

EP - 835

JO - Comparative Literature Studies

JF - Comparative Literature Studies

SN - 0010-4132

IS - 4

ER -