Spaţiile memoriale în fostele ţări fasciste. Spaţiul public în ţările occidentale după cel de-al doilea război mondial
Memorial spaces in former fascist countries. Public space in Western countries after World War II

Author(s): Bogdan Oţelea
Subject(s): History, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Architecture, Recent History (1900 till today), Post-War period (1950 - 1989), History of Art
Published by: INCD URBAN-INCERC
Keywords: controversial; monuments; totalitarism;
Summary/Abstract: The period following World War II presented Italy, Germany, and Spain with the complex task of confronting the legacies of fascism, dictatorship, and collaboration while simultaneously reconstructing national identities. Italy and Germany engaged in vigorous debates, navigating the dual imperatives of acknowledging wartime atrocities and forging new national narratives. German memory politics were profoundly shaped by large-scale confrontations with the Holocaust and Nazi crimes, influencing education and public memorialization. In contrast, Spain's post-Franco transition was characterized by a deliberate attenuation of controversial historical discourse, fostering a degree of national amnesia regarding its dictatorial past. This resulted in a divergence between official memory and popular efforts to recover historical truth. Comparing these national trajectories reveals distinct approaches to reconciling a difficult past with the demands of democratic modernity, highlighting both shared challenges and unique national paths in redefining post-war European identities.

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