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Between History and Politics: the Swedish Living History project as discursive formation
Author(s): Selling, Jan
Date: 2011
Topics: Holocaust, Main Topic: Holocaust and Memorial, Anti-Racism, Antisemitism, Anti-Antisemitism, Antisemitism: Education against, Holocaust Education, Newspapers, Magazines and Periodicals, Discourse and Discourse Analysis
Abstract: Texts and events regarding the Swedish Living History project in the years 1997–2008 are studied in the sense of a discursive formation, ‘Living History’. The article focuses on political aspects of changes, antagonism and discursive positions in public debates about ‘Living History’, whereby politics, journalism and academic history are seen as interacting parts. An examination of 651 press articles leads to the conclusion that ‘Living History’ changed its initial political focus of explicitly combating racism and anti-Semitism to eventually become a forum for universal democratic values, while at the same time focussing on apologetic views on communism. This development corresponds to the changing hegemonic discourse on ‘Living History’, from stressing the uniqueness of the Holocaust to a view strongly influenced by totalitarianism theory.