Czech and Polish Sound Memories of the Second World War

This book investigates the crucial yet often overlooked role of sound in shaping the memory of the Second World War.

Through an interdisciplinary and transnational approach, this volume addresses a notable gap in memory studies and argues that auditory experiences are central to how war is remembered, commemorated and narrated. By placing sound at the heart of collective remembrance, this book reveals how sonic elements influence public discourse, shape collective identities and contribute to the evolving transformation of war memory. Bringing together scholars from the Czech Republic and Poland, this volume examines how the Second World War has been remembered through sound since the 1990s across three distinct media: museum exhibitions, prose fiction and sound art – including soundwalks and field recordings. This innovative framework underscores the importance of exploring how different media evoke and reproduce sound to grasp the complexity and diversity of wartime memory in Central Europe. Focusing on Czech and Polish memory cultures, the book demonstrates that sound may function in multiple and sometimes contradictory ways: as a means of reinforcing national narratives, as a tool for critical engagement, or as a medium for experimental and marginal perspectives.

This volume is essential reading for scholars in memory studies, sound studies, cultural and public history, museology, literary theory and musicology, as well as for museum professionals and anyone interested in how the past resonates – literally and metaphorically – through sound.