Representing the Good German in Literature and Culture after 1945: Altruism and Moral Ambiguity

In the aftermath of the Second World War, both the allied occupying powers and the nascent German authorities sought Germans whose record during the war and the Nazi period could serve as a counterpoint to the notion of Germans as evil. That search has never really stopped. In the past few years, we have witnessed a burgeoning of cultural representations of this quot;other quot; kind of Third Reich citizen - the quot;good German quot; - as opposed to the committed Nazi or genocidal maniac. Such representations have highlighted individuals choices in favor of dissenting behavior, moral truth, or at the very least civil disobedience. The quot;good Germans quot; counterhegemonic practice cannot negate or contradict the barbaric reality of Hitlers Germany, but reflects a value system based on humanity and an quot;other quot; ideal community.This volume of new essays explores postwar and recent representations of quot;good Germans quot; during the Third Reich, analyzing the logic of moral behavior, cultural and moral relativism, and social conformity found in them. It thus draws together discussions of the function and reception of quot;Good Germans quot; in Germany and abroad.