Thursday, December 4, 1997
The University Daily Kansan
Section A·Page 3
Holocaust survivor relays experiences in book, speech
By Sarah Chadwick schadwick@kansan.com Kansan staff writer
A Holocaust survivor and former University of Kansas professor spoke yesterday about surviving the concentration camp at Auschwitz.
Professor Ruth Klüger read selections from her autobiographical book, "witer Leben," which translates to "To Live Longer." Her presentation, called "A Jewish Childhood Under the Nazis," focused on the impact that surviving the Holocaust has had on her. This was her first reading of the book in English.
"It's not so much about what happened but about how it infringes on us," she said.
About 35 students and faculty members attended the reading in 330 Strong Hall.
Because Klüger was just 7 years old when Germany invaded Austria in 1938, she was not fully aware of what was happening. She spoke about the difficult family relations she encountered after the ordeal.
After the war ended, she spent much of her time trying to get information from her family, she said.
"I can't get rid of the prickly feeling that I'm uncovering taboos," she said. "No one would tell me about it because I was too young."
Klüger recalled the time she disobeyed the law and went to the movies to see Walt Disney's "Snow White." As a Jewish child, she was not permitted to go, but her mother suggested that she ignore the law.
While at the theater, she was spotted by her non-Jewish neighbor who threatened to turn her in but did not.
"I sweated through the next 70 or 90 minutes and didn't know what happened on the screen," she said. "That afternoon at the movies almost cost me my life."
Her best-selling book was published in 1992 in Germany. It has been translated into Dutch, Italian, French, Spanish, Czech and Japanese. An English version is in the works, she said.
She has received numerous German literary awards for her book.
Klüger taught Germanic studies at the
University of Kansas from 1970 to 1972 and is now a professor emeritus at the University of California at Irvine.
"Her book has been taken seriously, in contrast to many works that have been written about Holocaust experiences," said Frank Baron, professor of Germanic languages and literature. "It's because in her work, Ruth Klüger not only narrates the experiences of concentration camps, she reflects about these experiences in a profound way."
The Western Civilization Program and department of Germanic languages and literature invited Klüger to speak at the University.
Matt Skinta, Andover freshman, attended the program after receiving a flier during a German class. After listening to Klüger speak, he said he planned to try reading the German version of the book.
"It was very moving," Skinta said. "I had never heard an actual Holocaust survivor speak before. It's different to hear a first-hand account and how she deals with it."
Author Ruth Klüger, KU professor from 1970-72, reads selections from her book "weiter leben." She gave a presentation to 35 students and faculty members yesterday afternoon in Strong Hall. Klüger's book is an autobiographical account of her time at Auschwitz. The book was published in 1992 in seven languages. Klüger now is working on an English translation. Photo by Pam Dishman/KANSAN
Learning about the Holocaust through books and films is possible. Baron said.
moments, who has reflected about the experience and is willing to share what she has learned," he said.
"It is something else to hear someone who actually lived through its most difficult
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