Re-Enacting the Holocaust in Maryan’s Ecce Homo (1975)
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Citation Stats
Attention Stats
Abstract
This article explores Maryan S. Maryan’s experimental film Ecce Homo (1975), as both a site of Holocaust remembrance and a radical intervention into the aesthetics and ethics of witnessing. Positioned against the backdrop of canonical Holocaust representations—from early documentaries to Shoah—Maryan’s film emerges as a self-initiated, transnational memory work that anticipates key features of the memory film. Through re-enactment, fragmented narrative, and visual collage, Ecce Homo aligns with Stella Bruzzi’s concept of approximation, presenting history not as fixed truth but as open to rupture and reinvestigation. At the same time, the film functions as an activist document that extends its testimonial impulse beyond the Holocaust, forging links with global histories of violence and oppression. The article situates Maryan’s translingual voice and diasporic biography within broader debates about trauma, documentary form, and the politics of visibility.
Type
Department
Description
Provenance
Subjects
Citation
Permalink
Published Version (Please cite this version)
Publication Info
Schmid, Achim (n.d.). Re-Enacting the Holocaust in Maryan’s Ecce Homo (1975). TRANSIT, 15(1). 10.5070/t7.47234 Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/34648.
This is constructed from limited available data and may be imprecise. To cite this article, please review & use the official citation provided by the journal.
Collections
Scholars@Duke
Achim Schmid
Overview
I am a third-year Ph.D. student in the Carolina-Duke Graduate Program in German Studies and a Perilman Fellow at Duke's Center for Jewish Studies. My research explores intersections of literature, film, and memory, with a particular focus on German-Jewish contemporary literature, memory culture and politics, transnational literature, documentary forms of literature and film, as well as German-language drama and theater.
My academic background has been shaped by a Master’s thesis at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, titled "Discourses of Memory and German-Jewish Literature in Selected Literary Award Speeches by Barbara Honigmann." I also contributed to the research project Women’s Drama and Theatre in German-Speaking Europe, 1600–2025, where I conducted research on 20th-century authors Lotte Ingrisch and Hedda Zinner, presenting on their contributions to German-language drama and theater. These experiences continue to inspire my focus on memory and identity in contemporary literature and performance.
I will be studying and researching at Potsdam University during the academic year 2026-27.
INVOLVEMENT
At Duke, I served as a Language Corridor Advisor in the Department of German Studies for two years. I help organize weekly German language practice sessions, film screenings, and cultural events to foster engagement within the academic community and promote a collaborative learning environment.
ABOUT ME
I am deeply passionate about teaching and strive to create engaging, inclusive, and inspiring learning environments for my students. I am continuously learning and reflecting on how to improve my teaching practices to better support student growth and foster a love for Lifelong Learning.
Outside of academia, I enjoy exploring the vibrant coffee shop scene in the Research Triangle, experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen, running, and immersing myself in the arts. Whether attending concerts, theater performances, or visiting museums, I find inspiration in the diverse cultural offerings of the area.
EDUCATION
M.A. German Studies, Duke University / University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2026
M.A. German Studies, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2023
B.A. (Teaching) German Language and Literature, and Political Science, University of Stuttgart, 2022
Unless otherwise indicated, scholarly articles published by Duke faculty members are made available here with a CC-BY-NC (Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial) license, as enabled by the Duke Open Access Policy. If you wish to use the materials in ways not already permitted under CC-BY-NC, please consult the copyright owner. Other materials are made available here through the author’s grant of a non-exclusive license to make their work openly accessible.