The Ethical Performance: Memory and Responsibility in Ari Polman’s Waltz With Bashir

• In Event: Spaces, Places, and Memory in Israeli Fiction

Abstract

For all its contribution to the SHOOTING AND CRYING genre of Hebrew narrative works, Ari Folman’s WALTZ WITH BASHIR (2008), stands out in that it breaks with the norm established in other works about the 1982 Israel-Lebanon War such as BEAFORT, PUMPKIN FLOWERS, or SUJUD. These texts contrast to those written about earlier wars in that the Enemy is no longer “the Arab,” but rather the war itself. By erasing the human subjects inhabiting the terrain around them, these works make it possible for their authors to ignore the effect the war has on the civilian population and instead focus on the soldiers who serve as the subjects of these works.
My proposed paper examines the themes of memory, ethics, and representing war through the film and graphic novel adaptation of director Ari Folman’s WALTZ WITH BASHIR. In this film, Folman grapples with uncovering his role in the Sabra and Shatila Massacre during the 1982 Israel-Lebanon War. Folman's journey reveals a personal struggle with repressed memories, exposing his sense of complicity in the civilian massacre carried out by Lebanese Phalangists allied with Israel. Through a wider national lens, the film may be seen as an allegory for the broader representation of this war within Israeli culture as a “forgotten war,” evident in the scarce literature on the topic. Yet, I wish to claim that the film and graphic novel adaptation can be viewed as a quest for personal absolution through a form of public confession, echoing ethical dilemmas recognized in the silences of intellectuals like Paul de Man on their complicity with Nazi Germany during World War II. Unlike de Man, Folman breaks his silence voluntarily, positioning himself within an ethical intersection that involves sharing experiences, fear of judgment, and responsibility towards the actual victims of the massacre. Ultimately, it is through his interactions with other witnesses that Folman can recover his memories of the event. This paper aims to delve into the intricate dynamics at play in this ethical intersection, examining the tension between the desire to disclose one's experience, the apprehension of societal judgment, and obligation to the victims.

Author

• Ido Moses, The University of Toronto