Experiencing – Remembering – Speaking About the Past. On the Signs of Traumatization in Autobiographical Texts

In my contribution, I will discuss possible manifestations of past traumatization in autobiographical texts on the basis of my empirical work in the field of social constructivist biographical research and my research on life stories of survivors of the Shoah. In doing so, however, I will not refer to a diagnostic key or even to the so-called post-traumatic stress syndrome, but rather illustrate on a descriptive level the conspicuous features in biographical narratives or self-presentations for which it is appropriate to pursue assumptions about traumatizing experiences or phases.