Commemorations
The Politics of National Identity
Published on 2. January 1994
Book
Hardback
308 pages
978-0-691-03200-9 (ISBN)
Description
In this volume, leading historians, anthropologists and ethnographers explore the relationship between collective memory and national identity in diverse cultures throughout history. Placing commemorations in their historical settings, the contributors disclose the contested nature of these monuments by showing how groups and individuals struggle to shape the past to their own ends. The volume is introduced by John Gillis's broad overview of the development of public memory in relation to the history of the nation-state. Other contributions address the usefulness of identity as a cross-cultural concept, the connection between identity, heritage, and history, national memory in early modern England, commemoration in Cleveland, the museum and the politics of social control in modern Iraq and many other issues.
Reviews / Votes
"This fascinating book, . . . points out how peoples and nations can use national identity to erase the past, to recreate it, to cause it to flourish, to meld it in with the present and the future."---Peter Rollins, Journal of American Culture "Brilliantly conceived and meticulously edited; the contributions are uniformly excellent. . . . No better introduction to the burgeoning field of historical memory is likely to be found."---Merrill D. Peterson, The Journal of American History "Scholars of collective memory, and the sociology of culture more generally, will find much that is provocative and poignant in this collection."---Robin Wagner-Pacifici, Contemporary Sociology "This is a vital book which deserves our utmost attention."---Martin Evans, History Today "Demonstrates that 'memory work' reveals as much about the present as about the past. And that can make extraordinary history."---Christine Schwartz, The Voice Literary SupplementMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
New Jersey
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
Trade binding
Illustrations
25 halftones
Dimensions
Height: 254 mm
Width: 197 mm
Weight
567 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-691-03200-9 (9780691032009)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
11/2018
1st Edition
Princeton University Press
€46.49
Available for download
Person
John R. Gillis is Professor of History at Rutgers University. His most recent book is A World of Their Own Making: Myth, Ritual, and the Quest for Family Values.