Continuing Down the Streets of Paris

Abstract

As a result of the two world wars, the memorialization of traumatic events saw an exponential rise in the last one hundred years (Koshar, 2000). Many debates have been sparred as a result, and each one has a resonating theme of representation and silencing of voices. At what point does conversation end and creation begin? In this paper, two areas are explored: “vandalism” of cultural sites, and the reshaping of the narrative by those who visit these sites without prior knowledge of their meaning. These two areas bring forth the notion of what voices are represented in the memorial creation process and how one might define an intended and unintended public. Using Michel de Certeau's (1984) example of walking the streets of Paris, the author presents new conclusions about memorials and the fluidity of their meaning.