(Re)Constructing Alternative Narratives of National Memory - the Case of the German New Right

Since the 1970s the German New Right has been trying to introduce alternative narratives of national memory into the public discourse. Following a long-term strategy of metapolitics New Right efforts have mainly been aimed at countering a “culture of guilt” and a rejection of a “negative German identity” based on Holocaust memory. Strongly relying on Heidegger’s philosophy of time, the New Right has instead been proposing a more “positive” narrative of national past and memory. This alternative vision, currently propagated by the Alternative for Germany (AfD), is characterized by a mixture of historical events with historical mythology as well as widely-accepted ethno-symbols.

Most studies on the German New Right have been following quantitative demand side approaches and neglect the role of ideology. Yet, as I argue, ideology plays an important role in the (re)construction and spread of alternative narratives of national memory and helps to explain the political success of New Right parties and ideas.

This presentation will provide a qualitative analysis of German New Right ideology, the way it narrates national memory and legitimizes its alternative narrative through the use of Heidegger’s philosophy of history. Moreover, it will look at the ways the New Right is attempting to translate these abstract ideas into concrete politics of memory. By exploring this I hope to provide a novel explanation for the successful dissemination of New Right ideas in the German public discourse as well as the contemporary resurgence of nationalist ideologies more broadly.