One of the most important qualities that has always distinguished man from animals, of course, is memory. The past for a person is the most important source for the formation of one's own consciousness and determining one's personal place in society and the world around.
Losing memory, a person loses orientation among the environment, social ties collapse.
What is collective historical memory?
Memory is not abstract knowledge of any events. Memory is life experience, knowledge of events experienced and felt, reflected emotionally. Historical memory is a collective concept. It lies in the preservation of the public, as well as the understanding of historical experience. The collective memory of generations can be both among family members, the population of the city, and among the whole nation, country and all of humanity.
Stages in the development of historical memory
It should be understood that collective historical memory, as well as individual, has several stages of development.
First of all, it's oblivion. After a certain period of time, people tend to forget events. This isIt can happen quickly, or it can happen after a few years. Life does not stand still, the series of episodes is not interrupted, and many of them are replaced by new impressions and emotions.
Secondly, people encounter past facts again and again in scientific articles, literary works and the media. And everywhere the interpretation of the same events can vary greatly. And not always they can be attributed to the concept of "historical memory". Each author presents the arguments of the events in his own way, putting his own view and personal attitude into the narrative. And it doesn't matter what topic it will be - world war, all-Union construction or the consequences of a hurricane.
Readers and listeners will perceive the event through the eyes of a reporter or writer. Different versions of the presentation of the facts of the same event enable people to analyze, compare the opinions of different people and draw their own conclusions. The true memory of the people can develop only with freedom of speech, and it will be completely distorted with total censorship.
The third, most important stage in the development of people's historical memory is the comparison of events taking place in the present time with facts from the past. The relevance of today's problems of society can sometimes be directly related to the historical past. Only by analyzing the experience of past achievements and mistakes, a person is able to create.
Maurice Halbwachs Hypothesis
The theory of historical collective memory, like any other, has its founder and followers. French philosopher and sociologist Maurice Halbwachswas the first to put forward the hypothesis that the concepts of historical memory and history are far from being the same thing. He was the first to suggest that history begins precisely when social memory and tradition end. There is no need to record on paper what is still alive in memories.
Halbwax's theory proved the need to write history only for subsequent generations, when there were few or no more witnesses of historical events left alive. There were quite a few followers and opponents of this theory. The number of the latter increased after the war against fascism, during which all members of the philosopher's family were killed, and he himself died in Buchenwald.
Methods of passing memorable events
The people's memory of the past events was expressed in various forms. In the old days, it was the oral transmission of information in fairy tales, legends and traditions. The characters of oral folk art were endowed with the heroic features of real people who distinguished themselves by feats and courage. Epic stories have always sung of the courage of the defenders of the Fatherland.
Later it was books, and now the main sources of coverage of historical facts have become the media. Today, they mainly shape our perception and attitude to the experience of the past, fateful events in politics, economics, culture and science.
The relevance of the historical memory of the people
In the modern world, the problem of historical memory is especially relevant. After all, without the experience of the past, a person is not able to recognize what will be possible for him and what will not. Only knowing the history of its developmentpeople, people are able to determine what will be useful for society in the future.
Today's trend towards rewriting historical events should definitely alert all of humanity. Unfortunately, some modern radical coalitions have taken as the basis of their convictions the theory of the German representative of irrationalism F. Nietzsche, expressed by him in his book “On the Benefits and Harms of History”. They try to comprehend the historical experience of the tragic events of destructive wars in a new way, arguing that a person needs to “cleanse” consciousness from imperfections. The preservation of historical memory is the main task of most of the society that does not accept the distortion of the events of the history of its people.
The moral crisis of the memory of generations
The problem of historical memory unites many sciences around itself: philosophy and psychology, ethnography, history and sociology. All of them are unanimous in the opinion that the perception of the events of the present time directly depends on the knowledge and assessment of the events of the past. Historical memory is a powerful regulator of public consciousness. If we talk about Russian society of the modern period, then we can safely state that among Russians, as well as among other peoples, a moral crisis is obvious.
Therefore, the main task for the older generation of our country already in the 21st century is the formation of the younger generation's priorities and desire to keep the memory of the past of their country.
The formation of a historical connection between generations of Russians today encounters many obstacles. From the TV screen, in newspapers and magazinesand especially on the Internet, radically opposite coverage of the same events constantly appears. Moreover, this applies not only to the facts of the present, but also to the events of past years and past centuries. How to avoid breaking historical ties and preserve the memory of generations?
Question of continuity of historical memory
The theme of the historical memory of Russians today sounds at almost every scientific conference, at all symposiums dedicated to the problems of youth. First of all, one must understand that the problem of the formation of historical memory among the younger generation is multifaceted, and many factors influence it. This is a complex process, including both social and economic conditions, ideology and education, as well as a general attitude to the history of one's country. The main task of science in this matter is the systematic study of history from the school bench and reliable coverage of historical facts on the pages of school textbooks. Only in this way will we be able to realize the slogan: "Let's preserve the historical memory of Russians."
Keep and cherish the memory of history starting at school
The historical memory of Russia has overcome difficulties for many centuries. This is due to the multinational composition of the population of our country. Each ethnic group that is part of Russia has its own culture and traditions, religious values and beliefs. Therefore, it will be especially important to create a unified school program for the Russian-speaking population, which will be aimed at forming a common Russian identity.
Already at school, children needto form the ability to compare and evaluate the experience of past generations and one's own. For today, this task is not an easy one, since in recent decades there has been a clear decline in the prestige of history as a school subject.
It is sad to admit that today the only identifier of Russian society is the memory of the Great Patriotic War. The historical memory of the mass death of compatriots in these terrible years, of large-scale destruction and brilliant victories, of the military achievements of Russian science is a powerful regulator of the consciousness of Russian youth. The merits of our ancestors who defended the independence of the country, and the memory of future generations are the links of one chain, the continuity between grandfathers and fathers, fathers and children.
Why is the memory of the war waning?
Time is the best healer for pain, but the worst factor for memory. This applies both to the memory of generations about the war, and in general to the historical memory of the people. Erasing the emotional component of memories depends on several reasons.
The first thing that greatly affects the strength of memory is the time factor. With each passing year, the tragedy of those terrible days is getting further and further away. 70 years have passed since the victorious end of World War II.
The political and ideological factor also influences the reliability of the events of the war years. The intensity of the political situation in the modern world allows the media to evaluate many aspects of the war unreliably, from a negative point of view, convenient for politicians.
And one more inevitable factor influencing people's memory of the war -natural. This is a natural loss of eyewitnesses, defenders of the Motherland, those who defeated fascism. Every year we lose those who bear "living memory". With the departure of these people, the heirs of their victory are unable to keep the memory in the same colors. Gradually, it acquires shades of real events of the present and loses its authenticity.
Let's keep the "living" memory of the war
The historical memory of the war is formed and preserved in the minds of the younger generation not only from bare historical facts and chronicles of events.
The most emotional factor is "living memory", that is, directly the memory of the people. Every Russian family knows about these terrible years from eyewitness accounts: grandfathers' stories, letters from the front, photographs, military things and documents. Many testimonies of the war are kept not only in museums, but also in personal archives.
It's already hard for little Russians today to imagine a hungry, destructive time that brings grief every day. That piece of bread laid according to the norm in besieged Leningrad, those daily radio reports about events at the front, that terrible sound of the metronome, that postman who brought not only letters from the front line, but also funerals. But fortunately, they can still hear the stories of their great-grandfathers about the stamina and courage of Russian soldiers, about how little boys slept at the machines just to make more shells for the front. True, these stories are rarely without tears. It hurts them too much to remember.
Artistic image of war
The second opportunity to preserve the memory of the war -these are literary descriptions of the events of the war years in books, documentaries and feature films. Against the backdrop of large-scale events in the country, they always touch on the topic of a separate fate of a person or family. It is encouraging that interest in military topics today is manifested not only on anniversaries. Over the past decade, many films have appeared that tell about the events of the Great Patriotic War. On the example of a single fate, the viewer is introduced to the front-line difficulties of pilots, sailors, scouts, sappers and snipers. Modern cinematography technologies allow the younger generation to feel the scale of the tragedy, hear the "real" volleys of guns, feel the heat of the flames of Stalingrad, see the severity of military transitions during the redeployment of troops
Modern coverage of history and historical consciousness
Understanding and ideas of modern society about the years and events of the Second World War today is ambiguous. The main explanation for this ambiguity can rightfully be considered the information war unfolded in the media in recent years.
Today, without disdaining any ethical norms, the world media give the floor to those who during the war years took the side of fascism and participated in the mass genocide of people. Some recognize their actions as "positive", thereby trying to erase their cruelty and inhumanity from memory. Bandera, Shukhevych, General Vlasov and Helmut von Pannwitz have now become heroes for radical youth. All this is the result of an information war, which our ancestors had no idea about. Attempts to distort historical facts sometimes reach the point of absurdity, when the merits of the Soviet Army are belittled.
Protection of the authenticity of events - preservation of the historical memory of the people
The historical memory of the war is the main value of our people. Only it will allow Russia to remain the strongest state.
The credibility of the historical events covered today will help to preserve the truth of the facts and the clarity of assessment of the past experience of our country. The fight for truth is always hard. Even if this fight will be "with fists", we must defend the truth of our history in memory of our grandfathers.
