In Search of Global Memory: Where Does the Transnational Turn in Memory Studies Lead?

Abstract

The article is devoted to the transnational turn in the research of collective and cultural memory in the 21st century, reflecting the desire of scientists working within Memory studies to go beyond “methodological nationalism” and explore the formation and circulation of historical memory across borders. Based on the English-language literature of the 2000s—2020s, the author analyzes the emerging field of Transnational Memory studies from the point of view of the categorical apparatus, disciplinary features and research approaches. Having documented that discussions about the transcultural dimension of collective memory are present even in the works of the classics of Memory studies, the author shows that the efforts of their modern critics are driven by the attempts to conceptualize the memory of the Holocaust, World War II, colonialism and other events of the “difficult past”. The abundance of closely related concepts elaborated in recent years creates an illusion of competition in this field, but these concepts are often based on fundamentally different ideological and methodological settings, and if some of the concepts possess a certain empirical potential, others are completely normative. The author identifies six main research lenses within the current state of Transnational Memory studies — international, supranational, diasporic, mediatized, digital and, finally, global, associated with the problem of memory synchrony/simultaneity. At the same time, according to his conclusion, getting rid of the national perspective in understanding transnational memory is still far from complete, and the very fact that scientists look beyond borders indicates that such borders still exist.