May the legends of the men of old be lessons to the people of our time, so that a man may see those things which befell others beside himself: then he will honour and consider carefully the words and adventures of past peoples, and will reprove himself.

The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night

To modify the past is not to modify a single fact; it is to annul the consequences of that fact, which tend to be infinite. In other words, it involves the creation of two universal histories.

Jorge Luis Borges: The Other Death

I tend to examine here the memories of extreme experiences, of injuries suffered or inflicted …

Once again it must be observed, mournfully, that the injury cannot be healed: it extends through time …

Primo Levi: The Drowned and the Saved

For my part, I have no illusions; what took place can happen again. We are only entitled to a respite, a reprieve between two …

Testimony of André in Claudine Vegh: I Didn’t Say Goodbye: Interviews with Children of the Holocaust