Mark Raphael Baker- Bio
Born in 1959 in Melbourne ›
Lectures in Modern Jewish History at the University of Melbourne.
Doctorate from Oxford University
Editor of Generation: A Journal of Australian Jewish Life and Thought
Son of Holocaust survivors- lives in Victoria with his wife and three children
Baker as an historian is sceptical of his mother’s stories as they at first they cannot be confirmed by historical records.
‘Does history remember more than memory?…that I never believed her, that I only recognise suffering in numbers and lists and not in the laments and pleas of a human being, of a mother, screaming for acknowledgement?’
Lectures in Modern Jewish History at the University of Melbourne.
Doctorate from Oxford University
Editor of Generation: A Journal of Australian Jewish Life and Thought
Son of Holocaust survivors- lives in Victoria with his wife and three children
Baker as an historian is sceptical of his mother’s stories as they at first they cannot be confirmed by historical records.
‘Does history remember more than memory?…that I never believed her, that I only recognise suffering in numbers and lists and not in the laments and pleas of a human being, of a mother, screaming for acknowledgement?’
The Fiftieth Gate: A Journey Through Memory
Explores some of the historical events surrounding the Holocaust and the post-war experiences of the Baker family ›
Uses a range of styles to create Baker’s version of this event ›
Significantly, it is subtitled ‘A JOURNEY THROUGH MEMORY
Uses a range of styles to create Baker’s version of this event ›
Significantly, it is subtitled ‘A JOURNEY THROUGH MEMORY
What is the text about?
Mark Raphael Baker’s personal story of his reactions to learning about the experiences of his parents during the Holocaust.
The historical events he researched surrounding the persecution of the Jews in the areas of Poland in which his parents grew up during WWII.
The testimony of his father: Yossl, who was imprisoned in some of the most notorious concentration camps.
The testimony of his mother, Genia, who was forced to hide for several years once the Jews of her village had been murdered.
Baker’s efforts to verify his parents’ testimonies
The relationship between Baker and his parents as he probes their past.
The experiences of Baker and his parents when they (re) visit the villages and death camps familiar to his parents.
In Jewish mysticism, it is believed that there are forty nine gates that separate good from evil. They are gates in our hearts.
Beyond them, lies a fiftieth gate, the point at which we stop moving but become aware of who we are.
It is the gate we pass through when we say I am.
– The Fiftieth Gate
The historical events he researched surrounding the persecution of the Jews in the areas of Poland in which his parents grew up during WWII.
The testimony of his father: Yossl, who was imprisoned in some of the most notorious concentration camps.
The testimony of his mother, Genia, who was forced to hide for several years once the Jews of her village had been murdered.
Baker’s efforts to verify his parents’ testimonies
The relationship between Baker and his parents as he probes their past.
The experiences of Baker and his parents when they (re) visit the villages and death camps familiar to his parents.
In Jewish mysticism, it is believed that there are forty nine gates that separate good from evil. They are gates in our hearts.
Beyond them, lies a fiftieth gate, the point at which we stop moving but become aware of who we are.
It is the gate we pass through when we say I am.
– The Fiftieth Gate