Human beings have a fascinating relationship with memory. We do our best to remember what we can and what we think is important, but we are forgetful creatures. In a modern society, perhaps oversaturated with stimuli, we even happen to forget basic things. We don’t remember where we put our keys, if we switched off all the lights before leaving our houses, the name of the person that introduced themselves at the party, and we might not even remember in what year anti-apartheid politician Nelson Mandela passed away.

Nevertheless, it seems that humankind has always cared about cultivating and understanding the relationship with their mnemonic abilities better. Across centuries, people have wondered, philosophised, theorised and told their stories about memory.

This article presents itself as a puzzle composed of various sources, ranging from ancient myths to modern mass media, which treat the themes of memory and remembrance of past events. The collection offers an opportunity to reflect upon some of the possible causes and remedies to our tendencies to forget.

In ancient Greece, cradle of western civilisation, people believed that the goddess Mnemosyne incarnated the concept of memory[i]. Mnemosyne was born in the union of Gaea and Uranus, and she was the mother of the Muses[ii]. They were the notorious deities who inspired many historical figures, such as Homer, Dante Alighieri, and John Milton[iii].

The Muses were preservers of arts and knowledge and the embodiment of inspiration[iv]. Circa seven centuries BCE, the poet Hesiod said about the daughters of Memory that they “inspire all those arts of communication that inform, delight, civilise, and link us with the past and with our fellows”[v]. In other words, arts and artefacts testify to history and to the bond between humanity and its memory. Every book, song, statue, dance choreography, building or speech is the tangible fruit of a specific Zeitgeist. And, because no statement about the past can be considered valid without the support of such sources[vi], it is fair to say that these should be preserved and scrutinised as they are.

Half a dozen centuries after Hesiod, in Rome, Cicero would write in the De Oratore that memory is the treasure and the keeper of all things[vii]. Here, the famed statesman would also affirm that history is the teacher of life[viii]. Cicero left us with a teaching that has kept its relevance through time: the importance of remembering the past lies in the pedagogic virtues of past events.

Thus, we must be able to recollect these with our own individual mnemonic skills and through the aid of said sources.

Our tendency to obliviate increases naturally, especially over time. In a collection of poems published in 1925, the Italian poet Eugenio Montale perfectly depicts with a metaphor the flawed process of remembering[ix]. In the same way the pulley screeches –⁠ as one tries to draw water from the deep underground source –⁠ the poet’s memories are distorted when he tries to recollect the image of his loved one from the depths of his memories[x]. If we are capable of forgetting the things we hold the dearest, it certainly is much easier to forget events that seem so unrelated to us.

Another testimony of human inborn memory issues is given by Gabriel García Márquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude. This novel, published in 1967, offers an example of García Márquez’s style; born as a journalist, his writing mixes stories inspired by real events together with magic elements[xi]. This means that even though it is just fiction, the events related to the many generations of characters offer an honest display of the fact that people (whether they are willing or not) happen to forget history, thus being destined to repeat it[xii]. 

In reality, if we put aside the fictional content of García Márquez’s opus, there exist proper testimonies of historical occurrences of forgetfulness. According to Primo Levi, a chemist, writer and former Auschwitz prisoner, memory is a beautiful but fallible instrument[xiii]. The writer warns us about the paths nobody should walk down anymore[xiv]. But what if humankind keeps repeating the same errors just because of their intrinsic amnesiac nature? This is probably the moment at which the aforementioned sources should come in handy to jog our memory. But what happens when the sources do not aid us?

The agenda-setting theory explains how mass media influence what we think about and the way we think about it[xv]. This is done by giving more salience to certain stories instead of others and by highlighting some specific details of these stories rather than others[xvi]. As a consequence, our perception of reality is impacted[xvii].

Mass media have the power to restage the past and exploit it according to contemporary popular taste or the interests of specific groups[xviii]. And this has its consequences on the audience, whose cognitive functions and memory can be threatened[xix].

After all, there is a specific set of values according to which news is worth publishing or not, and if we take the example of online news, the pressure of obtaining clicks and being profitable ends up playing a role in deciding what passes[xx]. Perhaps some of us forgot about ongoing conflicts in the world because they are not as newsworthy as they were months ago. Or maybe, because only certain stories with certain attributes fit the agenda, some of us may have particular attitudes toward immigrants but forgot that our compatriots were migrants a few years back.

In the end, it is those in power who write history. And mass media hold the power to ‘change’ the past, but also the power to elide by plainly voiding a product of salience. It is an old deed. The Romans would practice damnatio memoriae, condemning the memory and destroying the effigies of infamous figures like the emperor Nero, who set Rome on fire[xxi]. Or again, there are cases in which books have been burnt, eradicating the possibility for people to get in contact with knowledge coming from the past[xxii]. 

And we can still see the media’s attempts to tamper with our memories. Recently, the newspapers made known that Roald Dahl’s books (e.g., Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) were going to be republished with modified texts due to the language used by the author, which does not seem to respect the contemporary epoch’s sensitivity[xxiii].

Though, because of the backlash the initiative has received, at least one more generation will have the chance to deal with the original texts[xxiv].

And even though the extent of the decisional power of the consumers is arguable, it is good news to see a similar exercise of democracy. Maybe not all hope to remember is lost.

Conclusion

In a world in which educated people need not to burden their memory, as they have learned how to look things up online in a matter of seconds[xxv], it is good to cultivate memory in any way we can.

We need to preserve and continue nurturing our bond with memory. This can be done by first, striving to improve our own mnemonic skills and seeking knowledge, and second, safeguarding all those products inspired by the Muses, being possibly helped by institutions which should educate the world to remember[xxvi].

Dahl’s books stayed the same not because his words were nice, but because the vox populi preferred to remember them as the readers of the past editions would. We can choose not to buy those books. Or we can choose to explain how language is fluid and constantly mutating and how we should choose better words to express ourselves than a writer would do decades ago.

A better education on history and memory helps understand the content of a book by making us put things in perspective. Being able to comprehend a source as part of a historical context gives us more lucidity to discern which paths to follow, which manners and ideals of the past we want to leave for posterity, and which ones we better leave in the past.

When in doubt, just remember what Cicero said.

Endnotes

[i] Clara Claiborne Park, “The Mother of the Muses: In Praise of Memory.”, The American Scholar 50, no. 1 (1981): 55–71, https://www.jstor.org/stable/41210692

[ii] Britannica. “Mnemosyne.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. Accessed April 24, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mnemosyne.

[iii] Clara Claiborne Park, “The Mother of the Muses: In Praise of Memory.”, The American Scholar 50, no. 1 (1981): 55–71, https://www.jstor.org/stable/41210692

[iv] Clara Claiborne Park, “The Mother of the Muses: In Praise of Memory.”, The American Scholar 50, no. 1 (1981): 55–71, https://www.jstor.org/stable/41210692

[v] Clara Claiborne Park, “The Mother of the Muses: In Praise of Memory.”, The American Scholar 50, no. 1 (1981): 55–71, https://www.jstor.org/stable/41210692

[vi] University of Cambridge. “Getting Started: Reading Primary Sources.” University of Cambridge, Faculty of History. Accessed April 24, 2023. https://www.hist.cam.ac.uk/getting-started-reading-primary-sources.

[vii] Ninna Maria Lucia Martines. “La Memoria: Un Tema Letterario Attraverso I Secoli.” Treccani, l’Enciclopedia Italiana. Accessed April 3, 2023. https://www.treccani.it/magazine/chiasmo/lettere_e_arti/Memoria/memoria_ssc_infinito_mondo_della_memoria.html#:~:text=Nel%20De%20Oratore%2C%20Cicerone%20afferma,nostro%20presente%20con%20maggiore%20consapevolezza.

[viii] Ninna Maria Lucia Martines. “La Memoria: Un Tema Letterario Attraverso I Secoli.” Treccani, l’Enciclopedia Italiana. Accessed April 3, 2023. https://www.treccani.it/magazine/chiasmo/lettere_e_arti/Memoria/memoria_ssc_infinito_mondo_della_memoria.html#:~:text=Nel%20De%20Oratore%2C%20Cicerone%20afferma,nostro%20presente%20con%20maggiore%20consapevolezza.

[ix] Beatrice Panebianco, Mario Gineprini, and Simona Seminara. “Ossi Di Seppia e Il Male Di Vivere.” Zanichelli. Accessed April 4, 2023. https://online.scuola.zanichelli.it/letterautori-files/volume-3/pdf-verde/letterautori_verde_volume3_T12.pdf .

[x] Beatrice Panebianco, Mario Gineprini, and Simona Seminara. “Ossi Di Seppia e Il Male Di Vivere.” Zanichelli. Accessed April 4, 2023. https://online.scuola.zanichelli.it/letterautori-files/volume-3/pdf-verde/letterautori_verde_volume3_T12.pdf .

[xi] Fabiana Andrea, “Gabriel García Márquez y El Realismo Mágico.”, ORT Argentina – Campus Virtual, accessed April 25, 2023. https://campus.ort.edu.ar/secundaria/almagro/lengua/articulo/1683819/gabriel-garcia-marquez-y-el-realismo-magico.

[xii] Ejemplius. “La Memoria En 100 Años De Soledad.” Accessed April 4, 2023. https://ejemplius.com/muestras-de-ensayos/la-memoria-en-100-anos-de-soledad/.

[xiii] Ninna Maria Lucia Martines. “La Memoria: Un Tema Letterario Attraverso I Secoli.” Treccani, l’Enciclopedia Italiana. Accessed April 3, 2023. https://www.treccani.it/magazine/chiasmo/lettere_e_arti/Memoria/memoria_ssc_infinito_mondo_della_memoria.html#:~:text=Nel%20De%20Oratore%2C%20Cicerone%20afferma,nostro%20presente%20con%20maggiore%20consapevolezza.

[xiv] Ninna Maria Lucia Martines. “La Memoria: Un Tema Letterario Attraverso I Secoli.” Treccani, l’Enciclopedia Italiana. Accessed April 3, 2023. https://www.treccani.it/magazine/chiasmo/lettere_e_arti/Memoria/memoria_ssc_infinito_mondo_della_memoria.html#:~:text=Nel%20De%20Oratore%2C%20Cicerone%20afferma,nostro%20presente%20con%20maggiore%20consapevolezza.

[xv] Angeline Gautami Fernando, L. Suganthi, and Bharadhwaj Sivakumaran, “If You Blog, Will They Follow? Using Online Media to Set the Agenda for Consumer Concerns on ‘Greenwashed’ Environmental Claims.”, Journal of advertising 43, no. 2 (2014): 167–180, doi:10.1080/00913367.2013.841088.

[xvi] Angeline Gautami Fernando, L. Suganthi, and Bharadhwaj Sivakumaran, “If You Blog, Will They Follow? Using Online Media to Set the Agenda for Consumer Concerns on ‘Greenwashed’ Environmental Claims.”, Journal of advertising 43, no. 2 (2014): 167–180, doi:10.1080/00913367.2013.841088.

[xvii] Angeline Gautami Fernando, L. Suganthi, and Bharadhwaj Sivakumaran, “If You Blog, Will They Follow? Using Online Media to Set the Agenda for Consumer Concerns on ‘Greenwashed’ Environmental Claims.”, Journal of advertising 43, no. 2 (2014): 167–180, doi:10.1080/00913367.2013.841088.

[xviii] Aleida Assmann, “Transformations Between History and Memory.” Social research 75, no. 1 (2008): 49–72, https://doi.org/10.1353/sor.2008.0038

[xix] Aleida Assmann, “Transformations Between History and Memory.” Social research 75, no. 1 (2008): 49–72, https://doi.org/10.1353/sor.2008.0038

[xx] Tony Harcup, and Deirdre O’Neill. “What Is News?: News Values Revisited (again).” Journalism Studies (London, England), vol. 18, no. 12, 2017, pp. 1470–88, doi:10.1080/1461670X.2016.1150193.

[xxi] Pollini, John. “Damnatio Memoriae in Stone: Two Portraits of Nero Recut to Vespasian in American Museums.” American journal of archaeology 88, no. 4 (1984): 547–555, https://doi.org/10.2307/504743

[xxii] Lorraine Boissoneault, “A Brief History of Book Burning, from the Printing Press to Internet Archives.”, Smithsonian Magazine, Smithsonian Institution, August 31, 2017. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/brief-history-book-burning-printing-press-internet-archives-180964697/.

[xxiii] Ed Cumming, Abigail Buchanan, Genevieve Holl-Allen, and Benedict Smith. “Cancel Culture Claims Author Roald Dahl with Beloved Books Rewritten to Fit Modern Sensitivities.”, The West Australian, February 26, 2023. https://thewest.com.au/entertainment/books/cancel-culture-claims-author-roald-dahl-with-beloved-books-rewritten-to-fit-modern-sensitivities-c-9833852 

[xxiv] Elizabeth Blair, “Roald Dahl’s Publisher Responds to Backlash by Keeping ‘Classic’ Texts in Print.”, NPR, February 24, 2023. https://www.npr.org/2023/02/24/1159224907/roald-dahls-publisher-responds-to-backlash-by-keeping-classic-texts-in-print.

[xxv] Clara Claiborne Park, “The Mother of the Muses: In Praise of Memory.”, The American Scholar 50, no. 1 (1981): 55–71, https://www.jstor.org/stable/41210692

[xxvi] Aleida Assmann, “Transformations Between History and Memory.”, Social research 75, no. 1 (2008): 49–72, https://doi.org/10.1353/sor.2008.0038