Денацифікація Німеччини в німецькому історіографічному та суспільному дискурсі (1945-2021 рр.)

Abstract

Based on the analysis of published works of German scholars (historians, political scientists, philosophers) and public opinion leaders, the author aims to identify the main stages, trends and assessments in the study and coverage of the process of denazifi cation of Germany over the past 60 years. Denazifi cation had its specifi city in the British and French zones of occupation before the creation of Bisone, and later Trizonia, because there was no generalizing practice of Western democracies regarding the denazifi cation of West Germany. Denazifi cation first became a topic of family and, consequently, social debate in the 1960s, thus removing the public taboo on scholars’ research. Th e problem of denazifi cation remains one of the relevant topics of German historical discourse today, but the Ukrainian scientifi c community has not yet presented a separate analysis of German historiography, which determines the novelty of the proposed article. Based on the methods of historiographical analysis, problem-chronological and retrospective approaches, it was found that among the German academic community there were different approaches to the perception and evaluation of denazification, which infl uenced on the formation of three waves in social and historiographical discourse. It has been established that the fi rst wave was formed during the 1960s and 1970s as a result of the internal demand of public opinion leaders and the younger generation, without the involvement of professional scholars, when denazifi cation remained a very sensitive topic for society. In the second stage, which lasted until the mid–1990s, denazifi cation became the subject of special historical research, which revealed the specifi cs of responsibility for Nazi crimes, the issue of political stability and overcoming the past. Since the early 2000s, a third wave of historiographical discourse has emerged, representing modern approaches and assessments of denazifi cation: in–depth study of its aspects and analysis in the context of related political and legal processes, including clarifying the role of justice in the occupation period, guilt and personal responsibility for both recent and current political processes in the context of intensifying radical movements in Germany. The change of generations, the growing role of the media, unifi cation with the GDR, the collapse of the USSR – is not an exhaustive list of factors that infl uenced not only the revision of approaches to assessing the implementation of denazifi cation, but also the possible application of German experience abroad. The practice of public dialogue in the format of public discussions and research on sensitive historical topics determines the level of individual and collective responsibility for the political situation in Germany. Representatives of German historiography agree that denazifi cation was a component of interethnic reconciliation, but diff er in views on the methods of its implementation.