ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the testimony of the only known survivor of the Holocaust from Iran, Menashe Heshmat Ezrapour. We examine how eyewitness testimony of this unique Iranian- Jewish survivor can add additional insight and diversity to Holocaust research. In addition to presenting two significant stories of displacement affecting Jewish identity in the twentieth century (the Holocaust and the Iranian Revolution), the story of Ezrapour offers a non-European perspective on Holocaust testimonial research. We draw on narrative elicitation methods and analysis grounded in linguistic anthropology, specifically Type 1 and Type 2 narratives. Our data corpus consisted of love letters, family photos, a personal diary kept during the Shoah, interviews conducted by various news outlets, thank-you letters collected by the family, and our own conversations with family members. We particularly focused on Ezrapour’s diary and letters to a Christian woman that played a vital role in sustaining his well-being and revealing the role of faith in his survival. Ezrapour’s story offers a crucial perspective for contemporary conversations on the application and salience of narrative analysis to testimonial research. This chapter shows how narrative analysis can help us better understand the role of faith, spiritual, and religious frames in the healing process.
