Cultural Memory: A European Perspective

The essay discusses the issue of European Cultural Memory in the light of both the historical debate and literary criticism of the last twenty years. Memory studies can offer an interesting ground for observing the making of the new Europe, especially if one considers that the memory-power nexus is crucial to understand how memory has been subject to manipulation and exploitation by egemonic states. In particular, the cross-investigation of memory in the humanities and literary studies has marked the breakdown of disciplinary barriers, giving rise to a renewed comparison among disciplines such as history, philosophy, social sciences, anthropology. This essays points out the dynamic and positive aspect which links memory studies to a series of politcal issues which today underpin the moulding of a European scenario, as they can help to sort out new strategies for assessing controversial memories of the same time; a process which constitute a fundamental passage for the full achievement of 'reconciliation', inside the same country and across countries.