Overcoming the Past in German Scientific Discourse

Abstract

Even now German society is painfully aware of its past. For German historians and cultural scientists, the problem of overcoming the past is an important topic for discussion. The purpose of this research article is to explore the genesis of the phenomenon of overcoming the past in post-war Germany. To investigate the phenomenon and the development of the concept, the article analyzes the approaches of German historians to the study of this problem from the formation of the Federal Republic of Germany to this day. The research is based on the principles of memory studies to reflect on the problem of guilt and collective responsibility of the Germans for the Nazi era. In 1949–1990 the German society acknowledged Nazi crimes and established memorials. Political disputes on the reassessment of national socialism attracted public attention and transformed memory politics in the country. The author also applies a comparative historical method to determine how this went in two German states, Germany and the GDR. The results of the study show that after the unification of Germany, the concept of overcoming the past has changed and the problem of overcoming the past has got a new dimension in German scientific discourse. As the study has shown, at present not only overcoming the period of National Socialism but also rethinking the SED regime is a significant problem of public historical consciousness and the culture of memory in Germany. This double problem is widely discussed in the media and is finding its way into the collective consciousness and identity of the German people. The article describes and analyzes the specificities of the process of transformation. Scientific discussion of the differences between the understanding of the concept of overcoming the past and its practical applications described in the paper is another finding of the study.