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To: H-Net List on Memory Studies <H-MEMORY@H-NET.MSU.EDU> Subject: collective memory and collective identity Date: Mon, 2 Apr 2007 20:18:40 +0000 (GMT) Dear Anna, Thank you for raising this issue. I am working on the collective memory of a Palestinian village community and in that case, collective memory is also a way to deal with contemporary stakes. I do not think that we necessarily pass judgement when we try to see what the logic underneath some memory narratives is and how these narratives encourage certain attitudes and behaviours. I think that it is our task as historians or sociologists to think certain memories 'through to the end', that is, to try and clarify the objectives behind these narratives. Certainly there is no such thing as objective collective memory - the contradiction is I think inherent in the coupling of in the two words 'objective' and 'collective'. Collective memory is meant to create shared meanings and contribute to the force of a collective identity. This goal dictates the selection of certain memories and the 'forgetting' of others. For the ones involved in creating collective memory narratives truth is a secondary issue, in any case. I very much appreciate the work of Liisa Malkki on the collective memory narratives of Hutu refugees in Tanzania. I think that she was able to be critical in the academic sense of the term without passing value judgements, which must have been quite difficult at times, considering the violent history involved. The title of the book is 'Purity and Exile'. Looking forward to reading more on this question! Best regards, Falestin Naili Ph.D candidate in History University of Aix-en-Provence, France
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