Sounds, Silences, and Cultural Memory: An Analysis of the Artistic Performances Held during the “Grenada Revolution: 40 years After” 2019 Conference

Abstract

Using cultural memory studies as my guiding framework, this essay explores how memories of the Grenada Revolution are shared across generations. Arguing that the lack of education and the absence of public sites of memory result in the withholding of recollections of the Grenada Revolution, I analyze these issues in the context of the artistic representations of the Grenada Revolution as portrayed in the poetry, dance, and drumming youth-participation events which formed the entertainment program of the Grenada Revolution 40 years after: Commemoration, Celebration and Critique Conference. Critiquing the dominant militaristic symbols and imagery characterizing these cultural pieces, I argue for a continual creative enactment of the positives of the Grenada Revolution and suggest that the lively noises of these artistic expressions will serve as a viable means of creating cultural memory.