The Present Meanings of the Wartime Past

Abstract

Abstract The concluding chapter reflects on the distinctive characteristics of mnemonic contestation in each of the three meso-regions. While important differences remain, we must recognize that across the case studies discussed in the previous chapters, there were some common characteristics in the emergence of memory challenges and the strategies of memory challengers. What are those differences and what are the implications of their shared features? Are there common circumstances that have produced similar grievances in the three meso-regions? This chapter will consider the potential that memory contestation holds within and between mnemonic regions for producing misunderstanding, animosity and, in the extreme, the deterioration of relationships; but memory contestation could also potentially be harnessed to foster more complex, pluralistic understandings of the difficult past.