Pamięć a przestrzeń publiczna na przykładzie wybranych miast Górnego Śląska
The memory and public space on the example of selected cities in Upper Silesia

Summary/Abstract: The authors examine the public space of three cities of Upper Silesia (Głubczyce, Prudnik and Racibórz) in terms of an element of a broader political structure that is anchored in the memory of a particular center. Two major dimensions of entanglement of the towns in a great history are taken into consideration by the authors. In the first, called „In the light/shadow of supreme power”, various carriers of the memory are discussed that concern the city as: 1) the seat of the superior authorities, 2) places of enacting the ordinances of state authorities, 3) place of resistance from assimilation, imposed from above. With regard to the second dimension, which is described as „On the front/back of the armed conflicts” they indicate the carriers of the memory that concern the city as: 1) place of safety from the external enemy, 2) area of military actions, 3) facilities of military actions, 4) commemoration of the heroes and victims (both local and national). The authors conduct an analysis of the memorial content and the „special instructions” (descriptions of the objects, brochures, city maps, guides and tourist information posted on the websites of Municipal Offices and cultural institutions) through the usage of methods (paradigms) that present particular carriers of the memory and created images of the local past. Through a comparison of contemporary commemorations and special instructions with the ones from the past, the authors undertake the issue of reorientation of cultural memory in individual towns.

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