“Can I say about myself: I am a Jewish woman?” In Agata Tuszyńska “Rodzinna historia lęku”

Abstract

The aim of the article is to interpret “Rodzinna historia lęku” (“Family history of anxiety”) by Agata Tuszyńska from the perspective of Holocaust literature. Tuszyńska, as a post-Holocaust generation writer, addresses autobiographical themes closely related to the Holocaust. This issue is approached from the perspective of an adult woman who bears the stigma of the Holocaust. As a representative of the second generation, she did not experience the war, but she still feels its effects inherited from her mother. The author demonstrates that both in terms of form and content post-trauma is a key aspect for the interpretation of the text. The article is thus an attempt to outline the issues of women’s Holocaust prose based on Agata Tuszyńska’s book, and include it in trauma studies and contemporary literary reflection on the Holocaust.