Zeitgeschichte als Aufarbeitung

Abstract

The article reconsiders the relations between past and present in the era of “Erinnerungskultur”, i. e. remembrance culture. It describes the semantic careers of the terms “Zeitgeschichte” (contemporary history) and “Aufarbeitung” (coming to terms with the past) in the representation of the past in Germany after 1989. By discussing the inherent tension between both attitudes of coping with the past and its historical burdens, the article reflects upon the characteristics of today’s historical discourse: a remarkable alliance between politics and historiography, the dominance of teleological perspectives, and the revival of the belief in the concept of historical lessons (“historia vitae magistra”).