The Holocaust is the single most significant event in the 20th century. The event itself had enormous political, social and demographic effects on Europe at the time. However, the Holocaust is one of those rare events whose meaning survives beyond the generation who experienced it. We can see that Vladek's experience in Europe came to define much of Art's experiences in America. No doubt, Vladek's grandchildren will also have a consciousness of their history. We have seen through other narratives of the children of survivors that Art's experience is not isolated, but rather represents in an extreme what some many have experienced on their own.

The enduring legacy of the Holocaust will be the insistence on remembering it and never seeing such horror again. This is a phenomenon without parallel. Our society usually prefers to forgive and forget. We like to learn from the past, make improvements and then forget the actual events remembering only the legacy. In American society we seem intent on forgetting the horror of slavery, the gas attacks of WWI, and the effects of the nuclear bomb. Each of these factors are enormously significant in the psyche of our country. They form a common lens through which we view our world. However, we do not feel comfortable reminding ourselves of the specifics of the events.

Never forgetting is a goal that perhaps we can not help to achieve. We have such a huge volumme of information on precisely what happened and how events unfolded. From Schindler's List to Weisel's Night to Spielberg's SHOAH foundation to the internet we will never have the opportunity to forget. Over time, the intensity of the recollection will diminish. Art's children will not be effected as much as their Father. However, they will continue to remember and their lives will be shaped by Vladek's perspective more than they will realize at the time. I am sure at times people wish they could lose the memory, but it might just be in everybody's best interests if that remain impossible.

Click here to return to the main page.