The political economy of global memory: Shared memory of global conflict in Captain America: The First Avenger

Abstract

Recent scholarship explores the possibility of a global collective memory in which networked individuals transiting national, class, and ethnic boundaries create commonality from shared difference. Yet, the public past’s representation remains influenced by powerful entities such as governments and corporations, and resources made available, particularly by the popular culture industry, will likely shape globally shared memories. This study documents an instance of commercially mediated global memory, showing how Captain America: The First Avenger revised the original comic’s World War II backdrop to appeal to global audiences who would have been dire enemies during the period the film depicts. Scholars positing cosmopolitan memory might agree there is value in representing the world coming together to defeat a common enemy. Yet the film also relativizes historical depravities by claiming that real historical actors are not as bad as they seem and by suggesting that such acts are not truly ours but rather visited upon us by non-human strangers.