This ConflictA Talk focuses on memories of war and peace along the German-Polish border from 1933 to the present.
To read the Polish translation, scroll down.
Is there anyone in your family who experienced World War II directly or indirectly? What stories were told about that time? And perhaps just as important: What wasn’t talked about?
A war doesn’t simply end when the fighting stops. Experiences of violence, displacement, loss, and political upheaval can linger across generations—in stories, in silence, in places, in family memories, and in public narratives. What societies remember, what they forget, and what they push to the margins continues to shape how they understand themselves and one another even today.
This ConflictA Talk focuses on the memory of war and peace along the German-Polish border from 1933 to the present. We are very pleased to have historian PD Dr. Agnieszka Pufelska join us for a keynote address. Together with her, we will explore how National Socialism, World War II, its aftermath, and the divided postwar order continue to shape German-Polish relations and collective memory. She conducts research on the history of German-Polish relations at the Northeast Institute (IKGN e.V.) in Lüneburg. The IKGN is a cultural studies research institution and cooperates with the University of Hamburg as an “affiliated institute.” You can find out more about her work here.
It is important to us to hear different perspectives on war and peace along the German-Polish border during this keynote talk and the subsequent discussion—especially from people who live and/or grew up close to the border on the Polish or German side. It is therefore important to us that we can hear these perspectives despite possible language barriers and engage in dialogue. For this reason, we ask you in the registration form below to indicate which language or languages (Polish, German, English) you can comfortably follow a presentation and discussion, and we’ll do our best to ensure that differences in language proficiency don’t play too big a role. In this regard, this event marks a first for ConflictA. Let’s tackle this experiment together!
The ConflictA Talk is part of the research project “War and Peace in Collective Memory.”
Translation into Polish
Is there anyone in your family who directly or indirectly experienced World War II? What stories were told about those times? And, perhaps just as important: what wasn’t talked about?
War does not simply end when the fighting stops. Experiences of violence, displacement, loss, and political upheaval can linger for generations—in stories, in silence, in places, in family memories, and in public narratives. What societies choose to remember, what they forget, and what they marginalize continues to shape the way they perceive themselves and others to this day.
This ConflictA Talk event focuses on the memory of war and peace along the German-Polish border from 1933 to the present. We are very pleased to have invited historian Dr. Agnieszka Pufelska to deliver the introductory lecture. Together with her, we will reflect on how Nazism, World War II, its aftermath, and the divided postwar order continue to shape German-Polish relations and collective memory. She conducts research on the history of German-Polish relations at the Northeast Institute (IKGN e.V.) in Lüneburg. IKGN is a research center focused on cultural studies and collaborates as an “affiliated institute” with the University of Hamburg. More information about her work can be found here.
Our goal is to use this introductory lecture and the subsequent discussion to explore different perspectives on war and peace along the Polish-German border—especially from people who live near the border on the Polish or German side and/or grew up there. We therefore want to ensure that we can hear these perspectives despite any potential language barriers and establish a dialogue. For this reason, in the registration form below, we ask in which language or languages (Polish, German, English) you are able to follow the lecture and discussion well, and we will do everything in our power to ensure that differences in language proficiency do not play too significant a role. In this respect, this event marks a first for ConflictA. So let’s embark on this experiment together!
ConflictA Talk is part of the research project “War and Peace in Collective Memory.”
This is an automatic translation generated using the DeepL online tool.