The Holocaust and the Revival of Psychological History

Judith M. Hughes is a Professor of History and an Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego. She is also on the faculty of the San Diego Psychoanalytic Institute and has a small psychoanalytic practice. She is the author of seven previous books, including To the Maginot Line: The Politics of French Military Preparation in the 1920s; From Freud's Consulting Room: The Unconscious in a Scientific Age; From Obstacle to Ally: The Evolution of Psychoanalytic Practice; and Guilt and its Vicissitudes: Psychoanalytic Reflections on Morality.

'Elegant and accessible, Judith M. Hughes's sober discussion probes the inner lives of Holocaust perpetrators through the lens of widely read researchers. Her book is a reminder of how varied and challenging have been responses to one of the most unsettling questions of our time: 'how could they do it?'' Michael R. Marrus, Chancellor Rose and Ray Wolfe Professor Emeritus of Holocaust Studies, University of Toronto

• 1. Hitler; 2. Nazi Germany and the Jews; 3. Willing executioners; 4. Examinations of conscience; 5. A battle with truth; 6. Conclusion.