Miejsce pamięci versus symulacja przeszłości - druga wojna światowa na wystawach historycznych

Abstract

The Author examines the presentation of the German occupation at the Warsaw Rising Museum and in Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory in Krakow. Initially, she studies the space of these exhibitions and demonstrates that the Warsaw Rising Museum has some characteristics of reflective space, while the exhibition at the Schindler’s Factory is primarily a projective one. Then, she points out that both museums treat artefacts as illustrations of their stories, as a consequence of which they are simulations of the past rather than material testimonies of what had happened. Finally, the Author argues that the Warsaw Rising Museum primarily tells the story of glory of the Polish nation, while the Schindler Factory focuses on the social history. In conclusion the Author points out that none of the exhibitions breaks the existing taboos or offers a new approach to the past. Both museum stories perfectly reflect the shape of the Polish social memory of World War II. Differences in the way they present the past are a result of rooting each of the stories in different public debates that were conducted in Poland after 1989.