Remembering What Should Be Forgotten

The Case of the Katyn Massacre

Abstract

This article focuses on the issue of imposed silence and its influence on collective memory. It attempts to contribute to current discussions on how memory can be preserved through the use of cultural media. The case study of the Katyn massacre, a mass slaughter committed in 1943 on Polish officers and intellectuals by the Soviets, demonstrates that imposed silence can be defeated in the realm of aesthetics. The paper claims that the remembrance of this crime was in fact strengthened by the imposed silence and became one of the strongest factors in building collective identity in post-war Poland.