History and Memory

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alon Confino
Keyword(s):  
Academic Discipline ◽  
Historical Narratives ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Ordinary People ◽  
Historical Experience ◽  
History And Memory ◽  
The Past ◽  
Holocaust Memory ◽  
The Holocaust ◽  
Methodological Approaches

This chapter describes how memory has shaped the academic discipline of history. In the past two decades or so, ‘memory’ as a category to analyze and understand the relation of human beings to their past has become a nearly ubiquitous concept. Triggered jointly by the general crisis of representationalism and by a specific historical experience—the Holocaust—‘memory’ has replaced for some scholars a rather linear and monodimensional concept of ‘society’. Whereas in the past, memory was considered to be subjective and unreliable, it has now moved to centre-stage: it is in individual and collective memory that the past remains present in the contemporary agent. Memory, captured in methodological approaches such as oral history, also foregrounds the historical experience of ordinary people and thus carries the potential to counterbalance official, state-focused, and politically legitimate historical narratives, as well as those more broadly sanctioned by the academic enterprise.

scholarly journals Memory images: Holocaust memory in Balkan cinema(s)

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (32) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nevena Daković
Keyword(s):  
Master Narrative ◽  
History And Memory ◽  
The Past ◽  
Holocaust Memory ◽  
Political Crises ◽  
The Holocaust ◽  
The Future ◽  
Hybrid Format ◽  
Manifold Effect

The aim of this paper is to analyse the shift of the representational and narrative paradigms of Holocaust memory in the Balkan films that belong to two genres – of melodrama and historicalfiction. The hybrid format positons the Holocaust (hi)stories – already caught between forgetting and remembrance – on the unstable ground between trauma and nostalgia; between history and memory; or facts and fiction. The “regained visibility of the Holocaust grant us access” to Balkan past and present and oblige us to investigate the convergence of the history and the memory into Holocaust master narrative of the Holocaust.“Bringing the dark past to light” in cinema has manifold effect. First, the Balkan wave of Holocaustfilms, with its mixed generic performances, offers new answers to the traditional issues of, both, the ethics of memory and the ethics of representation. Second, the analysis of five films reveals that the trauma from the past – resisting the closure – has the potential to powerfully resonate in the present day political crises. Re-dressing the trauma of the past, the films present the future violence while fulfilling “the Holocaust dictum ‘never forget’”. Eventually, new representational paradigm gives consistency to the Balkan (hi)stories of the past and coherence to the identity in the present.

About benefits and harms of rewriting history. One of the topics of contemporary historical discourses: philosophical analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol - (2) ◽  
pp. 142-164
Author(s):  
Roman Zimovets
Keyword(s):  
Collective Identity ◽  
Identity Transformation ◽  
Historical Narratives ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Historical Experience ◽  
Historical Interpretation ◽  
The Past ◽  
Rewriting History ◽  
Historical Discourses ◽  
Global Communications

When we talk about historical revisionism, negative connotations as a rule are prevailing. Prohibition of revision of certain historical interpretation and assessment is one of the tasks of historical policy which is carried out by adopting so-called «memorial laws». Taking care of the formation of the desired representations of the past (narratives) is directly related to the interests of institutionalized power in its own stabilization and strengthening. Power is a function of the community, whose identity is formed historically. Consolidation of collective identity through the support and reproduction of common representations of the past is one of the tools to strengthen power. At the same time, the very nature of human experience acquisition which is permanent mediation of the horizon of the past and the present, presuppose a reinterpretation of this past. Major shifts in the experience of generations, which occur as a result of certain social changes, lead to a new look at the past of the community. In this sense, rethinking and rewriting history becomes necessary to clarify, update, rationalize the collective identity, which is problematized by new experience. Historical policy can both respond to this need for identity transformation through re- thinking representations of one’s own past and come into conflict with it. In the latter case, the narratives transferring by institutional power begin to conflict with the communicative memory of the generation experiencing a shift. One of the tools of self-preservation of power in this situation is blocking of living historical experience, which can take various forms. The culmination of such a blockade is «hermetization» of historical time that take place in totalitarian state. The living historicity of experience, which requires a constant rethinking of one’s own historically inherited identity, is replaced by an artificial, time-frozen identity, which, precisely because of this nature, becomes fragile and doomed to destruction. On the other hand, the rewriting of history initiated by the authorities within the framework of historical policy may face resistance to the representations of the past rooted in the communicative and cultural memory. The resistance of historical narratives indicates that the collective memory and the identity founded in it are not only a power construct, but also a spontaneous layering of sediments of historical experience. In today’s world of global communications and unified everyday practices, historical narratives are beginning to play an increasing role, as they remain the only seat of identity. At the same time, this process reinforces the conflict potential of communities, which can be observed in many examples of the revival of historically motivated political ambitions. In this situation, a critical clarification of various interpretations of the past becomes a means of rationalizing the historically inherited identity of communities as a necessary condition for intercultural dialogue.

Beyond the Question of Authenticity: Witness and Testimony in the Fragments Controversy

PMLA ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 116 (5) ◽  
pp. 1302-1315
Author(s):  
Michael Bernard-Donals
Keyword(s):  
Historical Evidence ◽  
History And Memory ◽  
Holocaust Memory ◽  
The Holocaust ◽  
Object Lesson

The publication of Binjamin Wilkomirski's Fragments in 1995 and the subsequent controversy over its authenticity can be seen as an object lesson in the vexed relation of history and memory. The book's status as an authentic memoir of the Holocaust has been impeached, yet Fragments may nonetheless be a useful vehicle for memory Cathy Caruth's and Shoshana Felman's work on trauma and on its relation to testimony indicates that testimony bears at best a tenuous relation to the events that form its core, particularly when the events are traumatic. An examination of Wilkomirski's language, read alongside (other) survivor testimony, suggests that Fragments may testify to a disaster other than the Holocaust. This conclusion, however, has controversial implications: that we need to reevaluate seriously how we treat testimony as historical evidence, including testimony of the Holocaust, and that the injunctions attached to Holocaust memory—never forget, never again—may be difficult if not impossible to heed.

scholarly journals Split Memory: The Geography of Holocaust Memory and Amnesia in Belarus

Slavic Review ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 77 (1) ◽  
pp. 174-197
Author(s):  
Anika Walke
Keyword(s):  
Jewish History ◽  
Mass Murder ◽  
Space And Place ◽  
Historical Experience ◽  
German Occupation ◽  
Holocaust Memory ◽  
The Holocaust ◽  
The One ◽  
The Impact

The remote location of Beshankovichy's mass grave for Jewish victims of the Nazi genocide reflects the exclusion of local Jews during the German occupation of Soviet territories and limits their memory to a few knowledgeable survivors and witnesses. In contrast, local commemorative practices focus on memorials for Soviet soldiers, partisans, and their aides. The paper reveals an incongruence of the place of historical experience on the one hand, and the locale of popular commemoration on the other, highlighting the impact of the Holocaust in Belarus to destroy Jewish history and its memory. The spatial division reflects the trauma of loss as much as shame for local participation in the mass murder. Drawing on oral histories, archival materials, and field visits, the study builds on a growing field of scholarship on the role of space and place in the construction of memories and identities in the aftermath of atrocity and trauma to discuss the geographical dimensions of memory and amnesia.

Lytton Strachey's Conception of Biography

PMLA ◽  
1951 ◽  
Vol 66 (4) ◽  
pp. 295-315
Author(s):  
Charles Richard Sanders
Keyword(s):  
Human Beings ◽  
Ordinary People ◽  
The Past ◽  
A Value ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Gift ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The One ◽  
Point Of Reference ◽  
Individual Human

Human beings are too important to be treated as mere symptoms of the past. They have a value which is independent of any temporal processes—which is eternal, and must be felt for its own sake.“ These two sentences, embedded in the well-known Preface to Eminent Victorians, must always be the starting point and a constant point of reference in any discussion of Strachey's conception of biography. The basis of all good biography must be, he firmly held, the humanistic respect for men—men in their separateness as distinct from lower creatures and in their separateness apart from economical, political, ethical, and religious theories; men in their separateness as distinct from one another, men as individuals, various, living, free. It has been well said that Strachey wrote with ”a glowing conviction that character is the one thing that counts in life“ and with a realization that individual human beings, however simple they may appear, are enigmatical, complex, and compact of contending elements. Each person carries his secret within him, and the biographer is one who has the gift for discerning what it is. Hence individual human beings are not only highly important; they are also highly interesting. The puzzle which the biographer has to solve in dealing with ordinary people is fascinating enough; but when the subject is a great man, the biographer works with his problem in an atmosphere of intense excitement, for about all great men there is something wondrous and incredible.

scholarly journals Trajetória da biblioteca pública no Maranhão Provincial

2006 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 38
Author(s):  
Cesar Augusto Castro ◽  
Ana Luiza Ferreira Pinheiro
Keyword(s):  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Physical Structure ◽  
Historical Research ◽  
Ordinary People ◽  
History And Memory ◽  
Civic Society ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Educational Field

Análise da trajetória da Biblioteca Pública do Maranhão desde a sua criação em 1829, no Convento do Carmo, até 1889. Formada inicialmente com o apoio dos homens da elite e de populares, desde a sua gênese até o advento da República, a Biblioteca Pública passou por diversas situações, ora de pleno abandono e ora de apogeu. Nesse particular, resgata-se o ofício do bibliotecário e diretores que fizeram brotar as iniciativas para a “socialização” do livro e da leitura no Maranhão oitocentista. A partir desta pesquisa histórica, pode-se compreender o papel que a mesma assumiu na formação da intelectualidade maranhense e na constituição do campo educacional, sendo o espaço privilegiado de convergência de idéias e saberes de professores, jornalistas, políticos o que ensejou na fundação da Oficina dos Novos, Sociedade Cívica das Datas Nacionais, Academia Maranhense de Letras, jornais, revistas e outras ações que favoreceram a São Luis ser denominada de Atenas Brasileira. Para o resgate dessa trajetória pesquisou-se em fontes como jornais, relatórios e falas de Presidentes de Província, legislação, iconografias entre outros documentos que possibilitaram traçar os seus caminhos e descaminhos, na constituição do seu acervo e da sua estrutura física. Conclui-se que esta pesquisa ao revisitar o passado revela as contradições na formação das bibliotecas públicas e abre-se um debate para a necessidade de investigações que busquem fazer emergir a história e memória dessas instituições no Brasil. Abstract Analysis of the path of Public Library of Maranhão since its creation in 1829, in Carmo Convent, to 1889. It was formed initially with the support of the elite and the ordinary people, since its genesis until the advent of Republic, the Public Library has been put under different situations, sometimes of complete abandon and others of peak. In this matter, it is rescued the work of librarians and directors that have created the initiatives for the ´socialization´ of the book and reading in Maranhão in the 80´s. From this historical research it is possible to comprehend the role that it has taken in the background of maranhense intelectuality and in the constitution of the educational field, it has been the privileged space of convergent ideas and knowledge of teachers, journalists and politicians that encouraged the foundation of the Oficina dos Novos (Workshop of Novice), Sociedade Civica das Datas Nacionais (Civic Society of National Dates), Academia Maranhense de Letras ( Maranhense Academy of Letters), newspapers, magazines and other actions which helped São Luis to be named as Brazilian Athens. For the rescue of this path, it was made researches on sources as such: newspapers, reports and speeches of Presidents of the Province, legislation, iconography among other documents that made possible to find its ways and non-ways, in the constitution of its heritage and its physical structure. It is concluded that this research by looking back to the past reveals the contradictions in the formation of public libraries and it also opens a debate to the necessity of investigations that bring out the history and memory of these institutions in Brazil.

scholarly journals Possible Levels of Analysis of Game Behavior in Historical Psychology

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 71-86
Author(s):  
A.G. Danilova
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Transmission ◽  
Psychological Research ◽  
Scenario Planning ◽  
Levels Of Analysis ◽  
Historical Narratives ◽  
Transactional Analysis ◽  
Social Games ◽  
The Past ◽  
Interdisciplinary Field ◽  
Methodological Approaches

Objectives. To discuss the possibilities of applying concepts and methods of transactional analysis in studying of behavior descriptions presented in historical narratives. Background. The modern research corps of historical and psychological research is composed of works performed from the standpoint of various methodological approaches. The actual necessity is the terminological coordination of concepts used in paradigms of different scientific approaches is noted. Мethodology. The phenomenon of social play is considered as an example of an interdisciplinary field of research. A comparison of the psychotherapeutic concept of the game by E. Bernе and the cultural concept of the game by Y. Huizinga is made. The key elements of game behavior that are highlighted in each approach are compared. The terminological structure of both approaches is compared. The article considers the interpretation of the concepts of “game” and “ritual” in both authors, their approaches to the analysis of scenario planning and intergenerational transmission of behavior patterns. The possibility of using the concepts of both approaches in the framework of historical and psychological problems as part of a consistent term system is revealed. Taking into account the intergenerational mechanism of games broadcasting and life scenarios based on them, the prospects for applying the analysis of social games in historical psychology are discussed. This consideration is illustrated by an example of cross-cultural transmission of social game and associated values’ dynamics, based on data from historical and literary studies. Сonclusions. It is possible to use the concepts and principles of transactional analysis in research of the behavior of people of the past. The use of several levels of analysis covering different scopes of relationships (interpersonal, group, intergroup/macrogroup) will allow us to trace the general behavior (structure of interactions) and specific features (context, social environment, transmission features). The study is preliminary in nature.

Memoirs, Memory, and Historical Experience

1994 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel Motzkin
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Paradigm Shifts ◽  
Historical Science ◽  
Historical Experience ◽  
History And Memory ◽  
The Past ◽  
Early Eighteenth Century ◽  
Subjective Truth

The ArgumentAgainst the idea that modern historiography developed in the eighteenth century as a completely new way of looking at the past, this paper argues that modern historical science borrowed its sense of experience from seventeenth-century memoirs. However, seventeenth-century rnemorialists made very different as sumptions than modern historians about the relations between time, memory, and history. One consequence of their introduction of lived subjectivity into the depiction of the past was a debate in early eighteenth-century France about the relations between history and fiction, some arguing that fiction is a better way of grasping the subjective truth of the past. These debates about the relations between history and memory and between history and fiction have resurfaced recently. The historical moods that are one context for paradigm shifts share common motifs, such as a sense of defeat, of distance between the present and the immediate past, and a need for consolation through the elaboration of a new mode of experiencing the past.

“We Are Making One Story, Yes?” - The Poetics of Interconnection in Postmodern Literature in a Global Age

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 7
Author(s):  
Miriam Wallraven
Keyword(s):  
The Novel ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Human History ◽  
Postmodern Literature ◽  
The Past ◽  
Global Age ◽  
The Holocaust ◽  
Cloud Atlas ◽  
Academic Discourses ◽  
Literary Devices

During the last decades, theories of interconnection and linking have been in the centre of many academic discourses: what goes back to the ancient hermetic worldview that regards everything as connected has been taken up in studies on our globalised world, for example as relationality in the form of cosmodernism. Thus, society has been regarded as linked in areas as different as social networks or globalised markets. In this paper, it is shown how such interconnections are created by storytelling. For this purpose, three metafictional novels with a multiplot structure are analysed. In Jonathan Safran Foer's novel Everything is Illuminated (2002), storytelling helps two very different characters to search for their identity and a traumatic family past influenced by the Holocaust. In the novel, three textual levels and several narrators make it visible that the search for identity and the past is only possible by interlinked stories and a process of co-authorship. The intricate structure of Catherynne M. Valente's fantastic novel Palimpsest (2009) thematises the connection between human beings and their stories which even spans different worlds. Metafictional structures – especially the structure of the palimpsest – illustrate how the whole world consists of stories written on other stories. David Mitchell's novel Cloud Atlas (2004) consists of six narratives set in different times and places which are connected by symbols, intertextual links, or intermedial adaptations. Hence, in the novel it is shown that despite wars, violence, and the struggle for power throughout history, human beings are connected across time and space – by their stories. By analysing these literary devices, a postmodern poetics of interconnection becomes visible that shows how human history is created by transglobal storytelling.

The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Studies

2009 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Academic Discipline ◽  
The United States ◽  
Jewish Studies ◽  
The Past ◽  
Past Half Century ◽  
The Holocaust ◽  
The World ◽  
General Aspects ◽  
State Of Israel ◽  
Past Half

The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Studies covers all the main areas currently taught and researched as part of Jewish studies in universities throughout the world, especially in Europe, the United States, and Israel. The span of the volume chronologically and geographically is thus enormous, but all international contributors have in common their expertise in the study of the history, literature, religion, and culture of the Jews. Jewish studies is a comparatively young discipline which has grown over the past fifty years in a somewhat undisciplined way. In a period of great upheaval for Jews following the Holocaust, the creation of the State of Israel, the emergence of new forms of dialogue between Jews and Christians, deepening divisions between secular and religious Jews, and unprecedented assimilation by diaspora Jews to the wider culture, the study of Jewish traditions and history has rarely been dispassionate. There have been some attempts in recent years to encapsulate current conclusions about particular aspects of Jewish studies, but these other works aim to provide compendia of agreed facts rather than a survey of interests and directions such as is found in this text. The book begins with an examination of Jewish studies as an academic discipline in its own right. The first half of the volume is organized chronologically, followed by sections on languages and literature, general aspects of religion, and other branches of Jewish studies which have each accumulated a considerable corpus of scholarship over the past half-century.

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