“Who among us is allowed to comfort?”: Literature evening about comfort and the Shoah in Göttingen
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Between Comfort and Incomprehensibility: An Evening about the Shoah
How can we talk about comfort when a historical wound must not be closed? On November 19, 2026, Dr. Sebastian Köthe and Dr. Dietmar Sedlaczek will address the question posed by Nelly Sachs in her poem Chorus of Comforters: Who among us is allowed to comfort?
Literature as Memory and Resistance
The evening will focus on poems and testimonies that tell of comfort and incomprehensibility in the face of the Shoah. The event will lead into a sensitive literary and historical discourse about language after genocide, the limits of what can be said, and the responsibility of remembrance.
Nelly Sachs' poetry serves as an important reference point. Her poetic language keeps the wound of persecution open and refuses any hasty reconciliation. Comfort does not appear as a simple answer but as an ambivalent human practice that can create closeness and yet become problematic.
Scientific Perspectives on Comfort
Dr. Sebastian Köthe works as a research associate in contemporary history at Justus Liebig University Giessen. His research project Weak Comfort in the Face of the Shoah examines the significance of comfort in light of historical violence.
Dr. Dietmar Sedlaczek has studied prisoner reports from victims of National Socialist persecution and conducted numerous interviews. As a long-time director of the Moringen Concentration Camp Memorial, he accompanied former prisoners of the Moringen concentration camps.
A Reading Atmosphere between Voice, Testimony, and Silence
The conversation combines literary reading, historical context, and reflection. Poems and testimonies enter into a dialogue with scientific expertise. This creates a focused literary experience that does not aim for quick answers but seeks precise listening, linguistic craftsmanship, and the question of how memory remains alive.
Commemoration as Cultural Responsibility
The event takes place as part of a series dedicated to commemorating the victims of National Socialism. It focuses on the cultural significance of literature and eyewitness accounts and asks when attempts at comfort become politically problematic. Its relevance lies precisely here: remembrance does not seek to soothe but demands attention.
Conclusion
Visitors can expect a compelling evening with poems, testimonies, and an expert discussion about comfort, grief, and the limits of human language. Those who experience literature as a space of memory and critical thinking will find an important place for encounter in Stadtlabor Göttingen. Admission is free.
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