Social Memory by James Fentress and Charles Wickham
Social Memory by James Fentress and Charles Wickham
Authors’ Background n James Fentress • Philosophy, Ph. D Anthropology – lives in Rome • Great deal of interest in Sicily and specifically the mafia n Charles Wickham • Teaches Medieval History at the Univ. of Birmingham (UK) • Primarily interested in Western European History from 400 -1250 AD
Aspects of Memory Words and Things n Visual and mental maps represent things without words • Direct representation n Text conserves the “memory of things” through the medium of words • Indirect Representation • Literature cultures use words to “semanticize” things, words are only to remember things n Words/images are generally only relevant in context but things can be decontextualized n Therefore, in terms of social memory, words and things are no different
Aspects of Memory n Sensory vs. Semantic Memory • Recognition • Recall • Articulation n Process may be internal or external • Rose Grower
Main Themes n Examination of public knowledge structures n Memory Transmission • • n Social process Historical value of memory Oral and/or written narratives Information validity vs. context of knowledge creation Commemoration • • • Use by social groups (peasants, working class, etc. ) Defines present-day “Blotting” out
Oral Sources n Anglo-Saxon scop • • • Oral Poet Auditory memory Auditory structure/framework built by poets • Transmission of auditory structure
Oral Sources n Song of Roland • Oral/Written epic which is neither fact nor fiction • First written version in 11 th Century • Sensory memory • Non-linear • Transmission of familiar, shared images
Oral Sources n Fairy Tales • Began orally with storytellers • Remembrance of themes • Transmission of common motifs • Transcend time, format, and culture
Oral Sources n Decontextualization • Key to survival of oral narratives • Certain “things” pass intact from one social context to another Auditory structure in scops n Visual images in Song of Roland n Motifs in fairy tales n
Medieval Written Sources n Gregory of Tours – Histories • Bishop of Tours (539 -594) • Wrote narratives about local history • Extremely gossipy, biased • Break from traditional social memory • Represents switch between king-centered narratives to local-history narratives
Medieval Written Sources n Charlemagne • King of the Franks (771 -814) • Ideological manipulation of memory • Two principal sets of narratives n n Wise ruler, layman - Einhard Pious ruler, saint • Society and politics changes social memory • Text content and style affect social memory
Medieval Written Sources n Icelandic sagas • • • Not focused on rulers Little national identity existed Based on family stories (primarily family feuds) Still used in present day Iceland Example of social memory created through unique, stable narrative conventions Example that the rules of narrative must be understood
Class and Group Memories n Peasant Memories • • • n Recurring importance of local geography Memories constructed outwards Community in resistance Working-Class Memories • Memories of past define present • Strikes, labor-resistance, jobs are all commemorated n n Welsh Miners Sesto metalworkers
Class and Group Memories n National Memories • Controversial, political • Rhetorical discourses • Internally divisive/divided • Built upon themes such as Wild West, French Revolution, etc. • Generally created by the bourgeoisie, intellectual class n May be hijacked from lower classes
Sicilian National Identity and the Mafia n Revolt of the Sicilian Vespers (1282 -1302) • Honorable vengeance, Expulsion of foreign oppressors n n Vespers story shaped Sicilian literature, history, morals, etc. for generations Vespers national myth created as a result • Example: Allied Invasion of 1943 n Popular uprisings of 1830 -1860 • Mafusi formed, considered honorable, freedom-fighters • Identified with Vespers; source of pride and legitimacy n By 1860, Italy was unified and the perception of the mafusi altered, now called mafia • Mafia were considered criminals, troublemakers
Reviews n n n Primarily from Anthropology and History Journals Generally Mixed Reviews Positive • Collaboration between historian and anthropologist • Laid groundwork for future research n Negative • Theoretical basis – too scattered and overwhelming • Only 6 pages devoted to women’s memories
My Critique n Theoretical Basis • Inability to focus theoretical discussion • Lacked coherence • Too much unassociated information to sift through • Beneficial to examine only a few key points
Questions n Is memory different than knowledge? n Is there a difference between personal and collective/social memory? n n n Fentress and Wickham claim that memory has subjective, social characteristics but can also bear objective information (social facts). In your opinion what affect does this have on social memory, if any? Comment on the assertion made by Fentress and Wickham that the validity of the information or story doesn’t necessarily matter because social memory is about the context through which knowledge is created and passed on. Is social memory a legitimate knowledge structure?
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