Abstract

Jonathan Safran Foer's first novel, Everything is Illuminated, addresses the concern of children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors and perpetrators with the possibility of reconciliation and how it relates to Holocaust memory. Through the use of characters that are grandchildren of survivors and perpetrators, and by contrasting two entirely different approaches to memory, one tragic and the other comic, Foer brings out the quandary of post-Holocaust reconciliation. This essay examines the dynamic relationship between the two main characters, Alex, a grandchild of perpetrators, and Jonathan, a grandchild of survivors, and their modes of remembering that vie with each other to the very end of the novel. The tension between them is underscored by Alex's desire to win Jonathan's friendship. Jonathan's ultimate refusal of friendship and reconciliation is examined in relation to Holocaust memory and the meaning of Holocaust representation, which, for Foer, should resist not only comedy but also full reconciliation.

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