Smyth in Memory (2018) Monuments

Monument Representation in the First World War

Dominant Imagery

• The prevailing narrative emphasizes white soldiers in trenches on the Western Front.

• War poetry and commemorations often focus on white men.

• Stories of white ancestors dominate media representations.

The Full Story of the First World War

• The First World War encompassed global fronts, involving millions from different backgrounds.

• Contributions of diverse groups are often overlooked.

  • Example: Chinese Labour Corps members who labored post-war.

  • Example: Japanese Canadian soldiers facing discrimination upon return.

  • Example: Contributions from the British West Indies and Indigenous soldiers.

Women of Colour in the War

• Participation was significant yet underrepresented.

• Women contributed on the home front and occasionally in medical roles.

• Call to diversify understanding of who participated in the war and how they’re remembered.

Labour vs. Combat Roles

• Racial biases prohibited many men of color from combat; they were assigned essential supportive roles.

• Support roles included labor for building infrastructure, cooking, and communication trenches.

  • Risked injury and death despite not being armed.

Key Contributors to Labour Efforts

• South Africa:

  • The South African Native Labour Corps consisted of over 20,000 men, including veterans, who played crucial roles in various locations.

• India:

  • India provided 1.5 million troops, with diverse religious and cultural backgrounds, facing segregation from the combatant community.

• China:

  • Over 140,000 men were provided as laborers, facing difficult journeys and conditions to support the war effort.

  • Largest mass migration in Canadian history, yet underreported in narratives.

Rights of People of Colour

• Participation did not translate to equal treatment pre- or post-war.

• Many soldiers were denied rights even after hopes for equality through service.

The Importance of Material Culture in Remembrance

• Material Culture: Memorials and cemeteries convey narratives about the war and those involved.

• Dynamic Nature of Memorials:

  • Evolving structures built over decades reflecting changing narratives and decisions.

  • New discoveries, restorations, and evolving meanings continue today.

• The design choices in memorials reflect political and social dynamics, influencing public perception.

The Case of India's Memorial

• Context: A single memorial was built despite protests for separate ones for different religions.

• Challenges in Commemoration: Balancing representations of Hindu, Muslim, and Sikh soldiers while respecting their traditions.

• Example: The Brighton Chattri memorial for Hindu soldiers illustrates specific cultural practices in memorialization.

Location Significance in Memorials

• Memorials at battle sites carry implicit messages regarding whose sacrifices are commemorated.

  • Example: South Africa's Delville Wood memorial reflects biases towards white narratives.

• New inclusions aim to rectify historical oversights, such as the wall recognizing all South African soldiers, irrespective of race.

Memorial Locations Beyond Battlefields

• Commemoration can occur domestically, reflecting colonial histories.

  • Example: The New Zealand War Memorial mirrors ancestral Māori sites; Canada honors Francis Pegahmagabow.

Acknowledging Absences in Remembrance

• It's crucial to recognize what and who is missing in the narratives of sacrifice and valor.

• Explore the perspectives of excluded groups while commemorating the First World War and beyond, facilitating a more comprehensive understanding of history.

Martindale et al. (2018) Oral Tradition

Overview of Memory and Cultural Context

• Memory is a complex process, not just recollection; it actively constructs identity.

• Methods of memory in societies vary, influenced by culture and technology.

• Record-keeping has evolved (from ochre to digital), aiding in historical documentation and recall.

Oral Tradition vs. Digital Media

• Oral Traditions: Persisted in many communities, defining their understanding of the world.

  • Relationship between experience and community memory is pivotal.

  • Selectively remembered stories create cultural identity, like the example of Canada’s amnesia regarding the Indian residential school system.

• Digital Media: Mirrors aspects of oral traditions.

  • Rapid spread, resembling ancient memory practices, offering a platform for knowledge sharing.

  • Social media facilitates connections, integrating modern and traditional forms.

Thangmi and Tsimshian Communities

• Thangmi Community:

  • Prioritizes oral tradition as their primary memory technology.

  • Collaboration shows a rich variety of nontextual techniques embedded within oral practices.

  • Integration of digital media has revitalized their storytelling through shamanic recitations and shared ceremonies.

• Tsimshian People:

  • Distinct worldview led to unique interpretations during European contact.

  • Oral narratives validate historical events and delineate legal memory frameworks.

  • Complex societal structure built on wrestling with past and present through oral forms.

Cultural Memory in Action

• Memory informs collective identity and knowledge through shared societal experiences.

• Both communities (Thangmi and Tsimshian) utilize oral cultures shaped by their histories and adaptively incorporate text and technology.

• Oral traditions may seem less standardized, yet they cultivate a richly detailed understanding of their history and identity.

The Role of Performance and Storytelling

• Performance captures unconscious cultural knowledge shaping conscious understanding.

• Tsimshian oral narratives maintain legal and historical identity; they teach and reinforce societal values via re-enactments.

Technological Convergence of Memory

• Memory processes adapt across generations with new technologies, showcasing flexibility in oral traditions.

• Digital platforms echo the participatory nature of oral traditions, creating coherent shared experiences.

Challenges of Digital and Oral Memory

• Potential misinformation in digital media underlines vulnerabilities of collective memory.

• Thangmi and Tsimshian practices illustrate how oral memory endures despite pressures from modernity.

Conclusion

• Memory is not static; it evolves with culture and technology, maintaining identity across different forms.

• Digital platforms replicate ancient practices, driving forward the narrative of who communities are historically and culturally.

When I was younger I used to always frequent the local community centre’s various festivals to celebrate different holidays and special occasions. As I grew older, I began to appreciate how these festivals in a different way once I began volunteering for one specific festival that meant a lot to me, the moon festival, as it connected me to my cultural heritage. It helped me look into the behind the scenes process of organizing festivals such as these and also served as significant memory cues that connected me to my cultural heritage. The celebrations via community festivals acts as a means of reinforcing cultural identity for community members in a way that also reinforces social bonds between the community. Smyth (2018) discusses memorials as a location for reflecting on collective memory, highlighting that they serve as tangible reminders of shared histories and experiences. This connection is is relevant to community festivals, in this case associating the community with its shared cultural experiences and general fun memory of festivals.

Martindale et al (2018) discusses how the Thangmi Community uses digital media as a way to preserve their oral traditions and assist with converging the traditional practices of the past with the present. Martindale et al (2018) explains how social media helps the Thangmi commmunity rediscover and redefine their culture through capturing it via lived practices and performances. This method assists with personalizing the Thangmi oral traditions via personal experiences, to enable both semantic and episodic memory to enhance the understanding and faciliating of oral traditions (Bartlett, 1932). Another form of preserving oral traditions is drawn from the Tsimshain society who use re-enactment as a form of narrative oral traditions. This could be a form of Chunking in memory by using the familiar groupings of introduction climax and resolution, often included in visual re-enactment stories (Bartlett, 1932).

Memory cues serve as a way to bridge generational gaps. For example, the festival I was referencing is important to both myself, because I grew up with it and it served as a happy time for myself growing up, but also for my parents taking me there year after year. The emotional resonance of memory cues serve as an effective method for memory recall and engagment as shown in the different methods of maintaining oral tradtitions.

References
Baddeley, A., Eysenck, M.W.,& Anderson, M.C (2020). Memory, 3rd ed.

Martindale, A., Schniederman, S., & Turin, M. (2018). Time, Oral Tradition and Technology.

Smith, H.(2018). Monuments in Stone and Colour.