Memorials and memory: The curation and interpretation of trauma narratives—using the examples of exhibitions on the theme of “comfort women” in East Asian Society

Abstract

Trauma memorials that preserve painful memories use the display of trauma to combine the memories and feelings of individuals, society, ethnic groups, and countries into a force that keeps the histories of victims from being lost and also makes visitors understand their own social moral responsibility and contemplate their attitude toward the future. This paper therefore uses the examples of memorial museums for “comfort women” 慰安婦 in East Asian society, including the Nanjing Museum of the Site of the Lijixiang Comfort Stations 南京利濟巷慰安所舊址陳列館, Chinese Comfort Women History Museum “慰安婦”歷史博物館, Taiwan Ama Museum for Peace and Women’s Human Rights 阿嬷家：和平與女性人權館, South Korean War and Women’s Human Rights Museum 戰爭與女性人權博物館, and Japanese Women’s Active Museum on War and Peace 女性戰爭與和平資料館 to discuss how trauma narratives are made and how trauma memorials should construct collective memories and assume social responsibility.