1st Edition

Informal Communication and Occupation in the Polish Borderlands Fragmented Worlds in East Upper Silesia, 1939–1945

By Izabela Paszko Copyright 2026
350 Pages 8 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

350 Pages 8 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

The book explores the neglected role and social dynamics of informal communication – interpersonal channels not controlled ‘from above’ – in the region of Upper Silesia under the German occupation during the Second World War (1939–1945). Whereas the classic dichotomies, such as private-public and formal-informal, have been widely explored and discussed in the humanities, the main focus of... Read more

Introduction

1. Upper Silesia – A Historical Context

2. Informality and Sense-Making Practices in the Borderland

3. It is said…: Communal Lives Collective Talk

4. Communication and Relations in Places of Forced Co-Existence

5. So Close and Yet So Far: Maintaining Familial Relations and Friendships under the German Occupation

Conclusion

Biography

Izabela Paszko is a social anthropologist with a PhD in history and works at the German Historical Institute Warsaw. Her scientific interests evolve around social history, commemorating practices and anthropology of everyday life.

"Combining an interdisciplinary approach with the historian's keen eye for the sources, Paszko's innovative and richly documented study tests the borders between private and public, shedding new light on community, intimacy, adaptation, resistance, and survival under the German occupation."

Jonathan Huener, Miller Distinguished Professor of Holocaust Studies, University of Vermont, USA