Memory Connection Vol 3

Page 13

The Profanity of Memory: Temporality and the Rhetoric of ‘Too Soon’—Kendall R. Phillips, Ph.D

The Profanity of Memory: Temporality and the Rhetoric of ‘Too Soon’ Kendall R. Phillips, Ph.D

Abstract The temporality of public memory is perhaps most evident when there are objections that some irreverent comment is made ‘too soon’ after a traumatic event. This essay explores this dimension of sacred temporality and a corollary sense of sacred space in relation to moments and spaces of remembrance. Keywords: humour, public memory, rhetoric, sacred, space, temporality, trauma

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