Book Discussion: Worlds Apart: Genre and the Ethics of Representing Camps, Ghettos, and Besieged Cities, by Benjamin Paloff

Session Submission Type: Book Discussion Roundtable

Brief Description

This roundtable discusses Benjamin Paloff’s recently published Worlds Apart: Genre and the Ethics of Representing Camps, Ghettos, and Besieged Cities, a groundbreaking work exploring how survivors of 20th-century atrocities used fiction to depict their experiences. By altering narrative structures and blending fact with fiction, these writers challenge conventional representations of collective trauma and historical truth. As the world faces another wave of devastating wars, Worlds Apart gains new relevance in examining how war and suffering are portrayed in the arts. Roundtable participants—specialists in literature and art of camps, ghettos, and sieges—will explore the book’s insights into the interconnectedness of these histories and engage with its rich documentary and analytical material.

Sub Unit

• Professional Development, Non-language Pedagogy, State-of-Field

Chair

• Alex Averbuch, U of Michigan

Roundtable Speakers

• Emily Stetson Van Buskirk, Rutgers, The State U of New Jersey

• Yevhenii Monastyrskyi, Harvard U

• Aleksandra Kremer, Harvard U