Morality as a Weapon of Resistance in the Works of Herta Müller

Abstract

This paper examines Herta Müller's novel The Hunger Angel, focusing specifically on the aspect of morality in the novel as a means of resistance against totalitarianism. Both Herta Müller's life and literary work constitute a history of resistance—a story of how one can transform personal, subjective experiences into the biography of an entire country. The central themes of her novels include authority and power, censorship and subjugation, emigration, and the search for national identity. To protect oneself from the destructive impact of totalitarianism, the writer considers adherence to universal moral principles to be one of the most important tools of resistance. In an era that overturned conventional understandings of law and justice, and at a time when neither human nor divine law seemed to function, the preservation of fundamental human and moral values remained the only path to salvation. Herta Müller's novels are particularly relevant to Georgia as part of the post-Soviet space. The issues depicted in her works are also deeply significant for Georgian society. The Soviet experience and the collective, intergenerational traumas it produced still require extensive study and reflection. For this reason, Müller's portrayal of Romanian totalitarianism, resistance, and the collapse of moral frameworks under oppressive regimes reflects the broader experience of the former Soviet world, and especially that of Georgia, where manifestations of totalitarianism and political repression were, in many cases, particularly severe.