The 20th century holds many titles that emphasise the extraordinary. It was a century of totalitarianism, but also one of betrayal, an age of extremes and the incomprehensible. Betrayed, that is, at the mercy of unrestrained violence, were not only the people themselves but also, as it were, the idea of the human being. For up to a certain point, one could weigh oneself in an unfounded security of an inner connection between people. As is well known, such certainties were knocked out of hand in that century.

Many situations, many images, motifs and sources can be named for this experience of unbounded violence, which now, at the beginning of the 21st century, requires new forms of transmission. In an era flooded with images, however, attention is more difficult. One has to embark on a search for traces, not because the sources are lacking, but because the form of inscription in history is problematic. This search for clues leads directly to the present monograph.