The Politics of the Nazi Past in Germany and Austria

This book argues that Germans and Austrians have dealt with the Nazi past very differently--with important consequences for political culture and partisan politics. David Art analyzes how public debates about the "lessons of history" created a culture of contrition in Germany that prevented a resurgent far right from consolidating itself in German politics after unification. By contrast, public debates in Austria nourished a culture of victimization that provided a hospitable environment for the rise of right-wing populism. The volume is for those interested in the memory of Nazism and the Holocaust, the rise of European far right parties and contemporary German and Austrian politics.