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Quote by Norman Geras

“A woman, Erika S., who lived at Melk in Austria near the site of one of the subcamps of Mauthhausen, gives a frank account of the way she dealt with this physical proximity. She did sometimes see things, unavoidably. She tells of having felt pity in particular for the plight of one Jew she observed, though a pity, it has to be said, that was mixed with something darker, namely amusement at the incongruous gait---'like a circus horse'---forced upon this man by the pain in his bare feet and the whipping of the guards. Her general attitude, however, Erika S. characterizes as follows: 'I am happy when I hear nothing and see nothing of it. As far as I am concerned, they aren't interned. That's it. Over. It does not interest me at all”

Book:The Contract of Mutual Indifference: Political Philosophy After the Holocaust

Work

The Contract of Mutual Indifference: Political Philosophy After the Holocaust

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Author

Norman Geras

Norman Geras was a prominent political commentator and writer. Known for his insightful analysis of political and social issues, Geras made significant contributions to the political debates of the Cold War and post-Cold War eras. His career included teaching positions at several universities in the UK and the US, as well as publishing articles in various publications such as The New Statesman, The Observer, and The London Review of Books. Geras' influence has been generally positive, though his views sometimes sparked controversy. more

“A crucial question for them, indeed, one challenging their humanity, is the question addressed to the spectator at the scene of evil. How continue life as normal after having seen that? How, if you are not a stone or a pile of dead wood or a cadaver? How, in other terms, without disappearing into the insentient natural cosmos? The victim and survivor of the Holocaust thus puts his question, embodied in literary form, so to say, of a prayer. To be indifferent is to stand condemned.”

Humanism Indifference Holocaust

Book:The Contract of Mutual Indifference: Political Philosophy After the Holocaust

Source: The Contract of Mutual Indifference: Political Philosophy After the Holocaust

“When, grown older, we look back on the selfishness of the people who’ve been mixed up with our lives, we see it undeniably for what it was, as hard as steel or platinum and a lot more durable than time itself. As long as we’re young, we manage to find excuses for the stoniest indifference, the most blatant caddishness, we put them down to emotional eccentricity or some sort of romantic inexperience. But later on, when life shows us how much cunning, cruelty, and malice are required just to keep the body at ninety-eight point six, we catch on, we know the score, we begin to understand how much swinishness it takes to make up a past. Just take a close look at yourself and the degree of rottenness you’ve come to. There’s no mystery about it, no more room for fairy tales; if you’ve lived this long, it’s because you’ve squashed any poetry you had in you. Life is keeping body and soul together.”

Life Soul Age Cruelty Selfishness Indifference Cunning Malice

Book:Journey to the End of the Night

Source: Journey to the End of the Night

“If we are looked at without being seen, we may feel ignored. If we are seen without being looked at, we may feel that we are victims of prejudices and identities that no longer correspond to us. We may feel misunderstood But if someone looks at us and sees us, then we can feel loved.”

Love Understanding Identity Prejudice Indifference Bias Biases

Author:Luigina Sgarro

“[W]e have colonized the future. We treat the future like a distant colonial outpost devoid of people, where we can freely dump ecological degradation, technological risk, and nuclear waste, and which we can plunder as we please.”