Today: Our Historical Anxiety series begins!
Join Jeffrey Andrew Barash and Nicholas Halmi for a conversation on our ambivalent relationship to the past
Event Time: 11am PT/2pm ET/7pm UK/8pm CET
“Anxiety over the Passive Presence of the Historical Past”
Jeffrey Andrew Barash in conversation with Nicholas Halmi
We live in a time of acute historical anxiety. This anxiety manifests itself in various forms: ambivalence about our relationship to the past, a disorientating sense of ever-accelerating change, the fear of an unpredictable and uncontrollable future. One form in which historical anxiety manifests itself is an ambivalent relationship to the past. For the past may possess a resonance that the present does not wish to acknowledge or cannot fully control.
In today’s event, Jeffrey Andrew Barash will discuss how historical investigation can reactivate, in unanticipated ways, deep-seated, symbolically charged attitudes, assumptions, and myths from the past. His primary example will be representations and investigations of the American Civil War and Reconstruction era – a timely issue as symbols of the Confederacy are being reclaimed for contemporary political ends. You can find out more and register here.
