Media, Memory, and the First World War

by David Williams

Overview

Of interest to historians, classicists, media and digital theorists, literary scholars, museologists, and archivists, Media, Memory, and the First World War is a comparative study that shows how the dominant mode of communication in a popular culture - from oral traditions to digital media - shapes the structure of memory within that culture.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780773585331
Publisher:	McGill-Queens University Press
Publication date:	04/01/2009
Series:	McGill-Queen's Studies in the History of Ideas , #48
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

David Williams is professor of English, St. Paul's College, University of Manitoba, and the author of Imagined Nations: Reflections on Media in Canadian Fiction.
David Williams is professor in the School of Politics and International Relations, Queen Mary University, and the author of Progress, Pluralism, and Politics: Liberalism and Colonialism, Past and Present.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 3

Part 1 Memory and Media

1 Modern Memory 17

2 Mediated Memory 33

Part 2 Classical Memory: Orality and Literacy

3 Oral Memory and the Anger of Achilleus 53

4 Scripts of Empire: Remembering Virgil in Barometer Rising 72

Part 3 The End of the Book and the Beginning of Cinema

5 Cinematic Memory in Owen, Remarque, and Harrison 103

6 "Spectral Images": The Double Vision of Siegfried Sassoon 138

Part 4 Photo / Play: Seeing Time and (Hearing) Relativity

7 Photographic Memory: "A Force of Interruption" in The Wars 161

8 A Play of Light: Dramatizing Relativity in R. H. Thomson's The Lost Boys 182

Part 5 Virtual Presences: History in the Electronic Age

9 Electronic Memory: "A New Homeric Mode" on History Television 205

10 Sound Bytes in the Archive and the Museum 237

Conclusion 269

Notes 285

Works Cited 297

Index 307

Editorial Reviews

"The author's inspiring overall argument and the thorough theoretical underpinning thereof, his in-depth analysis of cultural and media artefacts, and his creative treatment of a remarkably broad range of sources from different media and times make the reading of this book an enlightening experience for scholars in a wide variety of disciplines." Leen Engelen, Media & Design Academy (KHLim), Catholic University Leuven


"A brilliant book that deserves a large readership because it considers deep matters in an impressively intelligent way … This is a stunning work of imagination at so many levels - the reader is challenged by its speculative links and suggestions." Winnipeg Free Press


"A fascinating interdisciplinary approach to the construction of memory of the Great World War in diverse media. Williams' work should prove valuable to university students and professional scholars engaged in the history of memory from a variety of approaches and fields. Williams admirably expands our source base beyond the traditionally studied Anglo-American war narrative and he provides an especially engaging analysis of lesser-known sites of Canadian memory. Williams' ideas point toward new directions and context of scholarship on memory. His study is most welcome, as it challenges us to expand our thinking about memory through more diverse media into the contemporary age." Jason Crouthamel, Grand Valley State University

From the Publisher