Speaking the unspeakable

  • This article discusses the filmic representation of the infamous Wannsee Conference, when fifteen senior German officials met at a villa on the shore of a Berlin lake to discuss and co-ordinate the implementation of the so-called final solution to the Jewish question. The understanding reached during the course of the ninety-minute meeting cleared the way for the Europe-wide killing of six million Jews. The article sets out to answer the principal challenge facing anyone attempting to recreate the Wannsee Conference on film: what was the atmosphere of this conference and the attitude of the participants? Moreover, it discusses various ethical aspects related to the portrayal of evil, not in actions but in words, using the medium of film. In doing so, it focuses on the BBC/HBO television film Conspiracy (2001), directed by Frank Pierson, probing its historical accuracy and discussing its artistic credibility.

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Metadaten
Author details:Alex J. KayORCiDGND
URN:urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-434230
DOI:https://doi.org/10.25932/publishup-43423
ISSN:1866-8380
Title of parent work (German):Postprints der Universität Potsdam Philosophische Reihe
Subtitle (English):the portrayal of the Wannsee Conference in the film Conspiracy
Publication series (Volume number):Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Philosophische Reihe (162)
Publication type:Postprint
Language:English
Date of first publication:2019/09/11
Publication year:2019
Publishing institution:Universität Potsdam
Release date:2019/09/11
Tag:Holocaust; Jewish question; Nazi Germany; Wannsee conference; film
Issue:162
Number of pages:14
Source:Holocaust Studies (2019) DOI: 10.1080/17504902.2019.1637492
Organizational units:Philosophische Fakultät
DDC classification:2 Religion / 29 Andere Religionen / 290 Andere Religionen
3 Sozialwissenschaften / 32 Politikwissenschaft / 320 Politikwissenschaft
Peer review:Referiert
Publishing method:Open Access
Grantor:Taylor & Francis Open Access Agreement
License (German):License LogoCC-BY-NC-ND - Namensnennung, nicht kommerziell, keine Bearbeitungen 4.0 International
External remark:Bibliographieeintrag der Originalveröffentlichung/Quelle
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