Monuments are often ignored; what they commemorate tends to be forgotten a generation or two after their construction. Sometimes, though, their meanings become matters of urgent debate. This webinar will begin with an overview of how monumentalization has manifested across different societies, asking: what do monuments do, and why do we make them? In the context of ideas of collective memory, heritage, history, we will then consider recent crises in the U.S. and Europe.

This series is a partnership between the National Humanities Center (NHC) and the National Council for the Social Studies and is generously sponsored by the Library of Congress’ Teaching for Primary Sources grant program.

Registration: Free

Lead Scholar: Mia Fuller (NHC Fellow, 2018–19; Associate Professor and Department Chair, Italian Studies, University of California, Berkeley)