Research Seminar on Institutions of Social Memory

Thematic focus of this research seminar is collective memory and the role of archives as "memory institutions." Students examine the role of archives and archivists in shaping memory through appraisal and selection, creation and collection of oral history, and interpretation and display of documentary evidence. Most of the readings place archives in the context of a broader literature on memory and interpretation of the past, including comparisons between archives and other memory institutions, such as museums.