A discourse analysis of the collective memory constructed in the Fietas Public Art Project
Date
2014-07-25
Authors
Hu, Binjun
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Abstract
This research report is a selective examination of the impact of the Fietas mural project which
commemorates the apartheid-era forced removals of residents from Fietas in Johannesburg on
members of the affected community. It begins with a consideration of the concept of collective
memory, alluding to some of the problems in relation to public art projects. Boym’s two types of
nostalgia are the primary theories reflected in the project. A comparative analysis of
commemoration and memory-work in a global context that include Germany, Denmark, Norway,
China and Japan is articulated in an attempt to contextualize South African memorialisation
within an international frame of reference. The report follows mostly Norman Fairclough’s
discourse analysis method to interpret informant’s memories of Fietas with a particular interest
in ideas about difference and assumptions, especially those which are extra-experiential. The
findings of the discourse analysis demonstrates how the discourse of the collective memory of
Fietas is built out of a complex interrelationship of the two objects: Fietas and the mural. The
discussion of the results argues that the collective memory of Fietas constructed by the mural
reflects the conspiracy of a single plot proposed by restorative nostalgia. However, this
romanticized version of collective memory requires the function of reflective nostalgia, which
opens up possibilities of multiple versions of collective memory of Fietas. Based on the
discussion of the typology of nostalgia and associated arguments of collective memory, the
report suggests two characteristics of collective memory which are respectively mobility and
immobility. It then includes another voice in the discourse from the Play Urban project to
validate the argument. Lastly, some recommendations in addressing the limitations of this
research study are offered.