Polarized Pasts: Heritage and Belonging in Times of Political Polarization | BERGHAHN BOOKS
Join our Email List Berghahn Books Logo

berghahn New York · Oxford
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
Browse
Polarized Pasts: Heritage and Belonging in Times of Political Polarization

View Table of Contents


Series
Volume 8

Explorations in Heritage Studies

Email Newsletters

Sign up for our email newsletters to get customized updates on new Berghahn publications.

Click here to select your preferences

Polarized Pasts

Heritage and Belonging in Times of Political Polarization

Edited by Elisabeth Niklasson

234 pages, 22 illus., bibliog., index

ISBN  978-1-80073-848-5 $135.00/£99.00 / Hb / Published (January 2023)

eISBN 978-1-80073-849-2 eBook

https://doi.org/10.3167/9781800738485


View CartYour country: - edit Request a Review or Examination Copy (in Digital Format)Recommend to your LibraryAvailable in GOBI®

Reviews

“This volume adds an important and highly original contribution to debates on the contested role of heritage, identities and belonging in European states in the 21st century. Focusing on the instrumental role of the past in polarizing debates about origins, ethnicity, and nationhood, the volume offers a compelling account about the rise of populism and right-wing movements in Europe and their engagement with heritage discourse to meet their political ends.” • Graeme Were, University of Bristol

“This book is a timely contribution to a critical discussion on the political uses of heritage in polarized Western societies. It brings together thoughtfully written case studies in which the meaning-making of heritage is explored through racism, ethnonationalism, identity-building, and exclusive interpretations of the past.” • Tuuli Lähdesmäki, University of Jyväskylä

Description

When questions of belonging enter the forefront of political debates, so too does heritage. This volume draws critical voices from archaeology, anthropology and the classics into a conversation about political uses of the past in times of radical right populism. The authors show how ancient monuments and sites, bygone eras and political regimes, and even your genetic ancestry, can become wrapped up in polarized political debates. They also highlight how heritage, which is often thought of as a common good, can be dangerous in times of political polarization – erasing nuances between ‘us’ and ‘them’. Together, the texts pave the way for a better understanding of the political role of heritage in society.

Elisabeth Niklasson is Lecturer in Cultural Heritage at University of Aberdeen. She pursues research on EU heritage policy and the uses of the past by political parties in Scandinavia.

Subject: Heritage StudiesCultural Studies (General)Archaeology


Contents

Download ToC (PDF)

Back to Top



Library Recommendation Form

Dear Librarian,

I would like to recommend Polarized Pasts Heritage and Belonging in Times of Political Polarization for the library. Please include it in your next purchasing review with my strong recommendation. The RRP is: $135.00

I recommend this title for the following reasons:

BENEFIT FOR THE LIBRARY: This book will be a valuable addition to the library's collection.

REFERENCE: I will refer to this book for my research/teaching work.

STUDENT REFERRAL: I will regularly refer my students to the book to assist their studies.

OWN AFFILIATION: I am an editor/contributor to this book or another book in the Series (where applicable) and/or on the Editorial Board of the Series, of which this volume is part.