- Summary
- A follow-up, directed videotape testimony of Philip K., whose first testimony was recorded in 1989. Mr. K. describes Jewish education, culture, and community in Kisvárda; ghettoization by Hungarian troops in spring 1944, including thousands from surrounding areas; his recognition of danger in spite of others' Hungarian patriotism; deportation to Auschwitz; the entirely different conception of time in concentration camps; a rabbi who kept a mental Jewish calendar and helped him maintain kashruth; dealing with entirely new moral issues; the uncontrollable power of hunger; his desperation when he volunteered for transfer to Dachau; his ongoing and futile search for understanding how and why the Holocaust occurred and why lessons have not been learned; the importance and difficulty of redefining resistance and heroism under previously unimaginable circumstances; the contrast between Nazi and Jewish ideology; the profound change in world events marked by the Holocaust; survivors' profound difficulty learning to live again; his wish not to receive special treatment as a survivor; and the variety of experiences ("There are as many ways of survival as survivors"). He is joined briefly by his sister who discusses her efforts to memorialize those killed in the Holocaust and problems of survivors' children.
- Author/Creator
- K., Philip, 1924-
- Published
- New Haven, Conn. : Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, 1990
- Interview Date
- April 17, 1990.
- Locale
- Hungary
Kisvárda
Kisvárda (Hungary)
- Cite As
- Philip K. Holocaust Testimony (HVT-1319). Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.
- Other Authors/Editors
- Langer, Lawrence L., interviewer.
- Notes
-
Due to the fact that this testimony contains significant dialogue between the witness and the interviewers, two versions were produced at the time of the taping. One version has the camera focused solely on the witness; the second has two cameras alternating between the witness and the interviewer. The interviewer's questions are based on his study of the original testimony as well as a discussion of the witness's memories of the first testimony, its impact on his life, and general issues concerning memory and language.
Associated material: Philip K. Holocaust testimony (HVT-1300), Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.
Associated material: Isabella L. Holocaust testimony [sister] (HVT-1270), Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.
