ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the novel Suche nach M. (1997) by Doron Rabinovici and compares it with his novels Ohnehin [‘Anyhow’] (2004) and Andernorts [‘Elsewhere’] (2010). It also argues that Rabinovici develops a variation of the genre of Elternliteratur [parent literature] in opposition to family stories. In Rabinovici’s texts, it is the relationship of the parents with their sons that is central to the process of coming to terms with the past. The parents’ troublesome Vergangenheitsbewältigung [coming to terms with the past] has a tremendous impact on this relationship, which in turn affects the development of their masculinity. While the sons challenge hegemonic masculinity, they fail to develop a positive alternative male gender identity. One of the striking characteristics of the third generation (counting from the Shoah) in Rabinovici’s works is that they remain passive to avoid any engagement with the self, as well as childlike and irresponsible. They develop a fragile male identity. The male characters in Rabinovici’s works have in common that they switch identity frequently to escape reality, a process that coincides with violence against the self. They not only change their identity through the use of fantasy spaces, but they also do so in real life, thereby adopting a strategy of evasion. A few of the male characters embody the concept of a ‘gentle masculinity’, which is shown to have potential as a model for a positive alternative masculinity.
