#409301 in eBooks 2014-02-04 2014-02-04File Name: B00IBJJRHO
Review
38 of 38 people found the following review helpful. Excellent Overview of French Cultural Life During the OccupationBy I. Martinez-YborCulture matters. It mattered centrally to the Germans as they sought to establish a New Europe under German-Nazi hegemony. It mattered to the Vichy government as it sought to rid France of any vestiges of the Third Republic; to create a nationalistic; conservative society; and to ingratiate itself with the occupier with a policy of deliberate collaboration. It mattered because Paris was the center of Western Culture until 1940. Culture matters because it is what brings all the strands of society together and; in one way or another; reveals society to itself.The overwhelming majority of works dealing with the German occupation of France and the Vichy regime; deal with the political and military aspects of that difficult period; though some do focus on how ordinary citizens behaved during those years. What has been missing has been a thorough analysis of the "culture" community as it related to the Germans. This void is what Mr. Spotts "Shameful Peace" seeks to fill and mostly succeeds. This is not an exhaustive listing of who did what to whom during those years; not everybody who was anybody then is worth the memory. Spotts takes each of the elements of what we usually regard as "culture": literature; painting; sculpture; music; popular entertainement; publishing; theatre; film and; selecting representative figures; analyses their behavior; i.e.; answers the question did they collaborate or not; what form did collaboration; resistance; abstention; or flight take; what were the ramifications of their actions; how they fit within the German and Vichy schemes; and what was their respective aftermath with the Liberation. This is well structured analysis and narrative; a pleasure to read that becomes something of a page turner. The moral terrain is challenging as it dwells on choices people made; people with whose work one is familiar and of unquestionable merit to this day. The surprises come in the details as; in general; one is already aware; in many of the cases; about who collaborated and who did not. When discussing painters (Picasso; Matisse; etc.); it is interesting to also see dealers discussed; and how several (even "protected" Jewish ones) were more than willing to procure for Goering; Goebbels and Hitler the "old masters" they so craved. The Paris art market flourished during the occupation.In the summing up of the period; when discussing trials during the "depuration"; after the liberation; Spotts frames the underlying questions clearly: "In a country where ideas have always been more important than facts; the question was whether the accused should be judged for their opinions as well as their deeds. That led to further question whether opinions could become deeds when they called for action - such as arrest; assassination; or deportation. And behind this lay the still broader issue of the responsibility of artists and intellectuals to society." Indeed; these are the questions that underly the text. Indeed such were the times that accepting a dinner invitation from the occupier could be construed as a demoralizing factor to the resister. Had not the Spanish established a strong; universal operating principle during the Napoleonic invasion that the primary and most legitimate responsibility during an "occupation" is to resist it?I recommend in tandem a more specific analysis of the film industry during the occupation; Evelyn Ehrlichs Cinema of Paradox: French Filmaking under the German Occupation and Alice Kaplans work about Brasillach; The Collaborator: The Trial and Execution of Robert Brasillach.The book contains interesting illustrations. It is not footnoted. However; sources for each chapter are detailed in a separate section at the end.15 of 15 people found the following review helpful. A must-readBy A. ThieleThis is a well-researched; well-written account of French intellectuals behavior during the Occupation and its immediate aftermath. I was familiar with the topic before I read the book; and I can wholeheartedly say the author is accurate in what he depicts. I dont understand the poor ratings the book has received on this website - maybe theyre due to the fact that collaboration remains a touchy topic in some circles.There wasnt any big revelation for me in the book - yes; Drieu la Rochelle and Brasillach were "collabos"; Beauvoir stayed in Paris but tried to keep her hands clean; Guehenno was a Resistant; etc. What I think is the strength of the book is that it gathers vignettes of all the major French intellectuals behavior in one place. In addition; it introduces shades of gray in their behavior and makes the reader about what constitutes collaboration. Some cases were obviously clear-cut; but others not as much. It raises interesting moral issues.The book also arouses outrage regarding collabos attitude and the wide differences in treatment they received after the war. This is no small achievement from the author; given that the facts described occurred almost 70 years ago. He makes us feel the injustice of it all anew (especially when collabos got off almost scot-free).Certainly; the "epuration" was severe immediately after the Liberation; but sentences were often drastically reduced after a few years when some French decided they preferred to move on - often but not always; as is clear with the case of Germaine Lubin; whose behavior was not nearly as reprehensible as others who got punished much more lightly. Also; some newspapers were shut down; but "collabo" publishers like Gallimard were allowed to continue their business unimpeded.Again; many of the facts described in the book are well-known; and theres a bibliography for each chapter at the end of the book. I dont understand the negative reviews. The book is thorough and well-documented. There are a couple of annoying typos but not many. The biggest flaw of the book is to sometimes quote expressions in French without providing translations; but it only happened a handful of times.The first few chapters of the book are quite general; describing Germans efforts to control French culture after they occupied Paris. Later; each chapter of the book covers a different category of intellectuals; for instance; "Artful Dodgers" is about painters and "Enigma Variations" about musicians.This book has many of the characteristics of "Artists in Exile" by Joseph Horowitz; with its vignettes on a broad spectrum of people. It should become a reference for anyone interested in this period in French history.19 of 38 people found the following review helpful. More rocks lifted and more truth revealedBy J. AdamsThis is an interesting book; even if it is rather small and focused on the "artists and intellectuals" of France who got into bed with the Nazis in many different ways while the rest of the world fought the greatest menace to Western civilization since the Islamic invasion of Europe over 13 centuies earlier and died by the millions while these cowards sipped champagne with the scum of the earth.I hope that as more historians dig into the truth of what actually happened in France before and during WWII; that this smug country of collaborators; regardless of whom they collaborate with; will come to grips with the fact that they have no basis to judge any country about anything.Robert Paxtons book; Vichy France was the first of its kind to show that the Hollywood propaganda that became the myth that replaced fact during the the post-war era was not real history. And of course Jean Francois Revels magnificent book Anti-Americanism is one of the few that shows how the current wisdom of the West is nothing but fiction.this book is more narrowly focused; but shows how many who are held in high esteem by the world today were nothing but toadies for the Nazis as brave men fought and died to rid the world of evil.A quick read; but most revealing.
