The Sunflower

2 January 2018: In the closing section of Part I of The Sunflower, Simon Wiesenthal, after recounting the story of a dying SS officer asking for forgiveness for his crimes, writes, "You, who have just read this sad and tragic episode in my life, can mentally change places with me and ask yourself the crucial question, 'What would I have done?'" (98). It is a fascinating question, almost impossible (for me) to answer. Part II, “The Symposium,” collects responses from dozens of experts (from various disciplines, backgrounds, regions, and religions).

I read The Sunflower as part of my once-a-year, over-the-winter-break Common Reading Selection Committee work. It is important and unsettling and has kept me thinking about it for days. I suspect it will stay in my mind for a very long time. I have no real idea what I would have done in Wiesenthal’s situation. And it is fascinating to read all the different perspectives in the Symposium. I learned a lot about the differences, for instance, between Jewish and Christian ideas about forgiveness. I am glad to have read it.