The Fiftieth Gate Mark Baker Analysis
Memories are more important than history in showing us our past. Do you agree with this statement based on your reading of the Fiftieth Gate?
History alone is insufficient in understanding the past as it discounts the personal perspective that memory provides. However, this distinctiveness results in varying viewpoints of individual or collective memories, making memory alone insignificant as it does not have a singular truth. Memory forms the basis of history, while history clarifies certain aspects of memory. Undoubtedly, history and memory are dependent on each other and equally valid. This notion is further explored in the set text 'The Fiftieth Gate' by Mark Baker, as throughout the journey, Baker comes to realise the equal significance of both history and memory. The ‘truth’ is represented in The Fiftieth Gate …show more content…
'I can't answer that,' he tells me when I fire questions t him about the Judenrat in 1940..' Avraham is not able to verify all the issues Baker seeks, highlighting that both history and memory have their limitations – not one is more important than the other.
In Gate XLVII, the historical documents used, such as the letters, are important as it recognises the importance of personal details behind the official historical records. This shows how memory and history fit together to provide a more complete story. It emphasises the equal significance of history and memory. Gate XXII explores the distortion of memory, as seen in Yossl's account of his past - 'I don't know what date... what month... what year'. This further accentuates the concept of the 'gap' in memory, in which is unhelpful when attempting to tell the story of the
History alone is insufficient in understanding the past as it discounts the personal perspective that memory provides. However, this distinctiveness results in varying viewpoints of individual or collective memories, making memory alone insignificant as it does not have a singular truth. Memory forms the basis of history, while history clarifies certain aspects of memory. Undoubtedly, history and memory are dependent on each other and equally valid. This notion is further explored in the set text 'The Fiftieth Gate' by Mark Baker, as throughout the journey, Baker comes to realise the equal significance of both history and memory. The ‘truth’ is represented in The Fiftieth Gate …show more content…
'I can't answer that,' he tells me when I fire questions t him about the Judenrat in 1940..' Avraham is not able to verify all the issues Baker seeks, highlighting that both history and memory have their limitations – not one is more important than the other.
In Gate XLVII, the historical documents used, such as the letters, are important as it recognises the importance of personal details behind the official historical records. This shows how memory and history fit together to provide a more complete story. It emphasises the equal significance of history and memory. Gate XXII explores the distortion of memory, as seen in Yossl's account of his past - 'I don't know what date... what month... what year'. This further accentuates the concept of the 'gap' in memory, in which is unhelpful when attempting to tell the story of the