Childhood Memories of the Holocaust and Vichy

Abstract

This chapter proposes that comic books such as Paroles d’étoiles can enhance our understanding about producing and transmitting knowledge concerning the Holocaust under Vichy. Survivor testimonials and memories of hidden Jewish children are presented within the context of memory studies, connecting this with new cultural history and the widening of sources, discussed here in relation to the problems of representing trauma and memory in Holocaust Studies. Creative synergy between drawings and text provides insights into less tangible aspects of memory and of ordinary children’s experiences, including previously under emphasised personal aspects of their world. This highlights how comics can be used to portray the relationship between iconic symbolism and memory, haunting guilt, feelings of abandonment and identity crises.