Le symptôme commémoratif: L'exemple du Bicentenaire de la Révolution française (1989) (Paris- France)

Commemoration is nothing else than addressing the man of the present in the name of the past in order to stress their common evolution (devenir). In fact, history and the past is transformed again and again on such occasions, depending on the outlining of the present and the “roots” of the future. On the other hand, every revolution is a foundation which separates. Cohesion is only possible if the "heritage" is selected in the process of commemoration. The paper compares the 100th, 150th and 200th anniversary of the French Revolution, emphasizing the role of various traditions (republican, leftist and extreme right). Regarding the 1989 anniversary, irony has a special role in its understanding.

Full Text