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Children's Literature in Education

, Volume 45, Issue 3, pp 211–224 | Cite as

Representing “The Great Devouring:” Romani Characters in Young Adult Holocaust Literature

  • Rachel Dean-Ruzicka
Original Paper
First Online:

Abstract

This article discusses the representation of Roma–Sinti (“gypsy”) characters in young adult literature about the Holocaust. It analyzes three primary texts: Jerry Spinelli’s Milkweed (2003), Erich Hackl’s Farewell Sidonia (1991), and Alexander Ramati’s And the Violins Stopped Playing (1985). The article argues that only Ramati’s text gives a detailed description of Roma–Sinti culture, while Spinelli’s and Hackl’s texts merely deal with the “gypsy” on a surface level. I call for a critical evaluation of texts featuring Roma–Sinti characters in order to encourage cosmopolitan engagement with another culture. In the article, I adapt the language of cosmopolitan philosophers Kwame Anthony Appiah and Judith Butler to exemplify the positive and negative effects that literature can have on readers.

Keywords

Gypsy Romani Roma–Sinti Holocaust literature Young adult literature Genocide Discrimination 
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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Department of Literature, Media, and CommunicationGeorgia Institute of TechnologyAtlantaUSA

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