Discussion Forum (Archived)
Guest
I found this word used as an adjective in a Jane Gardam novel, in the phrase "holocaustian windows," referring to church windows. Any idea what it means? The dictionary says that one meaning of "holocaust" is a Jewish sacrificial offering. Would holocaustian windows display a sacrificial scene of this kind in stained glass?
Holocaustian appears to be a coined adjective. The most visible use of holocaustian appears to be a derogatory term used by those who do not believe in the holocaust to refer to people who do or things that reflect that position. What it might mean in the context of this novel is a guess. Perhaps the character or the narrator is being shown by the author to hold an anti-holocaust view of history by his reaction to windows that show some suffering of the nation of Israel.
It would not be common for a church to have stained-glass scenes of Nazi Europe. But it is common in a church to see windows depicting the Christmas story, including the "Slaughter of the Innocents" (also "Massacre ...") during which Herod the Great had all of the Jewish boys killed who were two years old or less (Matthew 2:16-18) Chartres. Perhaps such windows might be taken as being "holocaustian windows."
Martha Barnette
Grant Barrett
Grant Barrett
1 Guest(s)