Customer Reviews

Realms of Memory: Rethinking the French Past, Vol. 1 - Conflicts and Divisions

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This acclaimed work of the 1980's and 1990's, which took over a decade to assemble and was contributed to by scores of expert authors, sets out to describe how the French people have "constructed" their history through symbols, allusions, and associations, and then shift that constructed memory into the public consciousness. The series, which took up seven volumes in the original French, has been described as "monumental," and there can be little doubt that this description is completely correct, due to its size, scope, and coverage. But it is more than that. This is a set that is superbly written, and the choice of topics, and the depth into which each is examined, would easily make this a de-facto standard work for anyone today wishing to have a true understanding of what the French feel it means "to be French." It is certainly Pierre Nora's "magnum opus," and if you have anything more than a passing interest in French history, "Frenchness," and French symbols, you will not want to pass on this work.

The current English translation here is, unfortunately, taken from a selection of the original seven volumes, and composes three large volumes. Nora defends the reduction as maintaining the spirit of the original, in spite of the omissions. He may be right. But it is nevertheless unfortunate that the complete set was not translated. But, on the bright side--and indeed, it is bright--the translation here by Arthur Goldhammer is absolutely superb, and there is almost not a trace of the grammatical oddity that can occur when translating between French and English, and vice-versa. The text reads as smoothly, accurately, and clearly as though it were originally written in English.

The content is absolutely superb. Volume 1 focuses on politics, minority religions, and divisions of time and space, which probably doesn't mean anything when first heard, but once you read the prefaces and get into the content, the rationale for these choices of topics and chapters is quintessentially French. For example, why do the French overwhelmingly regard the Gauls as their ancestors, yet rarely have any historical markers to the Gauls in the country? And we thought it was not the Gauls, but the Franks, who were the progenitors of the French nation? So, is it Gauls, or Franks? And what about the belief that the political "left" and "right" originated in the French Revolution, yet earlier references in French works seem to identify this concept as previously existing in the English nation? And what about the tension between Gaulists and Communists, Catholics and Seculars, French and Foreigners, the Ancient Regime and the Revolution? Nora's book looks at the construction of French history through such events as symbols, and then the passing of these symbolic references into an evolving growth of historical story.

This is a book as fascinating to read as it is beneficial to learning, and it really should be on your list if you wish to understand the French world better. And although the volumes are quite expensive, you can occasionally find a few copies in the used marked in very good shape at a good price. I highly recommend this series as one that is fascinating, complex, evocative, and unusual.

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Volume 2 focuses on the roots of social models in France, and Volume 3 on Symbols:

Realms of Memory: Rethinking the French Past, Vol. 2 - Traditions

Realms of Memory: Rethinking the French Past, Vol. 3 - Symbols