"Memories continually change through repeated recollection, yet their tendency over time is to a reduction which mirrors that of photography--like a stack of snapshots repeatedly returned to. Such memories become archetypal crystallizations of identity--slides in the carousel of the mind."
— Stallabrass, Julian (b. March 16, 1960)
Date
May-June, 2017
Metaphor
"Memories continually change through repeated recollection, yet their tendency over time is to a reduction which mirrors that of photography--like a stack of snapshots repeatedly returned to. Such memories become archetypal crystallizations of identity--slides in the carousel of the mind."
Metaphor in Context
Still images have a deep affinity with memory. A full recollection--say of a person--almost always involves some visual re-experiencing of expressions, gestures and bearing, some of which are held frozen in the mind. Moreover, traumatic events are more likely to be mentally stilled: people who have undergone severe traumas may have flashbacks as isolated pictures, while they recall ordinary events in a narrative manner. Memories continually change through repeated recollection, yet their tendency over time is to a reduction which mirrors that of photography--like a stack of snapshots repeatedly returned to. Such memories become archetypal crystallizations of identity--slides in the carousel of the mind.
(p. 29)
(p. 29)
Provenance
Reading
Citation
Julian Stallabrass, "Memory and Icons: Photography in the War on Terror," New Left Review (May-June 2017). <Link to NLR>
Date of Entry
08/05/2017
