Concentration Camps: A Short History

by Dan Stone

Concentration camps are a relatively new invention, a recurring feature of twentieth century warfare, and one that is important to the modern global consciousness and identity. Although the most famous concentration camps are those under the Nazis, the use of concentration camps originated several decades before the Third Reich, in the Philippines and in the Boer War, and they have been used again in numerous locations, not least during the genocides in Bosnia. They have become defining symbols of humankind's lowest point and basest acts.

In this book, Dan Stone gives a global history of concentration camps, and shows that it is not only "mad dictators" who have set up camps, but instead all varieties of states, including liberal democracies, that have made use of them. Setting concentration camps against the longer history of incarceration, he explains how the ability of the modern state to control populations led to the creation of this extreme institution. Looking at their emergence and spread around the world, Stone argues that concentration camps serve the purpose, from the point of view of the state in crisis, of removing a section of the population that is perceived to be threatening, traitorous, or diseased. Drawing on contemporary accounts of camps, as well as the philosophical literature surrounding them, Stone considers the story camps tell us about the nature of the modern world as well as about specific regimes.

Genres: History, Holocaust, Nonfiction

176 pages, Hardcover

Published May 1, 2017

About the author

Dan Stone was born in Lincoln and brought up in Birmingham. He studied at the University of Oxford and since 1999 has taught at Royal Holloway, University of London. Dan is a historian of modern Europe with particular interests in the Holocaust, comparative genocide, fascism, race theory, and the history of anthropology.

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oxford University Press publishes a series of books called Very Short Introductions on a variety of topics. While this book might appear at first glance to be in the same vein, it is more of a series of reflections on concentration camps in generally chronological order.

One of the main questions of the book seems to be: “what is a concentration camp?” There is a vague definition in the introduction, a different but equally vague definition in the last chapter (neither of which are much discussed or justified), but the main answer seems to be: it depends. That is fine. But some places Stone identifies as camps contradict his original definition, and some that he doesn’t identify as camps fit his definition.

Which concentration camps (or things that might be concentration camps) get coverage and which don’t is rather puzzling. Stone seems certain that the camps of the Bosnian genocide were indeed concentration camps, but doesn’t devote even a full paragraph to them. He seems equally certain that DP camps for Jews after WWII were not concentration camps, but spends a great deal of time discussing them. These issues make the book seem rambling and at times almost incoherent. The last chapter is an almost stream-of-consciousness series of quotes from others and Stone’s thoughts on them.

The book contains many questions, some of them interesting and thought-provoking. Just don’t expect many concrete answers.

[David C Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

A useful short survey of the concentration camp that struggles defining what a concentration camp is. The problem is that the “classic” image of the Nazi camp is so potent an image of human destruction and evil that it is applied indiscriminately to organizations (refugee camps, POW camps) and even societies (Cambodia, the Global South) to ratchet up the political stakes. Some theorists are now claiming the whole world is a concentration camp as an indictment of modernity. Not politically or analytically useful! It ought to be possible to make distinctions between oppressive, even murderous, institutions. For one thing, there is the often ignored principle of “concentration” in a CC: housing enemies of the state in a compact mass ( indeed overcrowding is often the point); exile to the zillion miles of Siberia is not a camp however awful the Gulag was. We can also make distinctions between functions: a POW camp is different from a refugee camp from a penitentiary from a black site. And also different are the attempts by states to relocate populations as a policy of social or political engineering.

[Will · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although a very short book, Dan Stone does a great job of challenging images of Nazi death camps as being emblematic of concentration camps. Instead, he argues that Nazi death camps were an exception, and shouldn't be the paradigmatic example of what we think of when we discuss concentration camps. He provides a number of other examples of concentration camps from each continent, while also discussing how these forms of arbitrary detention and institutionalized violence are on the increase int eh 21st century.

[Kevinjwoods · Rating 3 out of 5]

or to give it another title Concentration Camps: A pointless History as it has chapters explaining the common details of Gulags, and Nazi camps, a brief history of every other camps and a bit of philosophy.
Suspect most people who would want to read this would already know almost everything mentioned in it.

[Thordur · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short book of only 133 pages. Eye-opener. There have been all kinds of camps all over the world and the wwii Nazi camps weren't the first ones.

[Chris Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the historical aspect of the book. I’m not sure how a camp for illegal immigrants compares to A Nazi concentration camp.