Writing the Burden of Family History: Descendant Narratives of World War II Perpetrators in Norway, 1980s–2020s

This article presents a comprehensive historical overview and analysis of Norwegian descendant literature written by children and grandchildren of World War II perpetrators—specifically Nazis, Waffen-SS front fighters and members of the fascist party Nasjonal Samling (NS)—from the 1980s to the 2020s. Based on an analysis of twenty works, it shows how these narratives articulate the emotional and social burden of family history and engage with an evolving national memory culture. The analysis identifies generational and temporal patterns, including a significant divergence within the second generation. Early publications (1980s) and later “NS children’s” accounts (2010s) foreground stigmatisation, bullying, exclusion and long-term repercussions, whereas self-reflective second- and third-generation works (2000s–2020s) increasingly portray internalised responses, such as inherited shame, guilt and emotional ambivalence. By tracing these developments, the analysis shows that descendant narratives both reflect and reshape existing frameworks of remembrance. Across periods and generations, the burden is marked by strong emotional responses and interwoven with national memory culture. These findings offer new insights into the emotional dimensions of Norway’s evolving memory of World War II, highlighting the interplay between personal, familial and collective memories.