Document and Analyze: The Legacy of Klemperer, Fraenkel and Neumann for Contemporary Human Rights Engagement

Oette, Lutz

Abstract

Human rights discourse has been criticized for being legalistic, decontextualized, and failing to focus on factors explaining violations. Victor Klemperer’s diaries chronicled the life and suffering of a German Jew in Nazi Germany and the manipulation of language by a totalitarian regime. Ernst Fraenkel’s Dual State and Franz Neumann’s Behemoth set out theories offering profound insights into the legal and political nature of the Nazi system. Revisiting their work from a human rights perspective is richly rewarding, providing examples of engaged scholarship that combined documentation and critical analysis. Their writings hold important lessons for contemporary human rights engagement and its critics.

Citation

Oette, L. (2017). Document and Analyze: The Legacy of Klemperer, Fraenkel and Neumann for Contemporary Human Rights Engagement. Human Rights Quarterly, 39(4), 832-859. https://doi.org/10.1353/hrq.2017.0051

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Sep 29, 2016
• Online Publication Date: Nov 3, 2017
• Publication Date: Nov 1, 2017
• Deposit Date: Dec 2, 2016
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 2, 2016
• Journal: Human Rights Quarterly
• Print ISSN: 0275-0392
• Electronic ISSN: 1085-794X
• Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 39
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 832-859
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1353/hrq.2017.0051