Pluralising Pasts: Heritage, Identity and Place in Multicultural Societies - Softcover

Ashworth, G. J.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0745322859 ISBN 13: 9780745322858

Publisher: Pluto Press, 2007

Synopsis

The heritage industry is big business. From museums and the preservation of old buildings to broader questions of community and identity, heritage is now a political issue. This book explores what heritage means and how it is used to encourage people to identify with particular places and 'traditions'. The authors show how contemporary societies use heritage in the creation and management of collective identities and, most especially, the different ways in which it is involved with the questions of multicultural societies. The resources that are poured into heritage mean that questions of identity are widely discussed at a policy level: what does it mean to be American or British, or a minority in any society? This book shows how heritage is used politically and commercially to shape the ways people represent themselves, and are represented, in diverse and hybrid societies.

About this title

Synopsis:

The heritage industry is big business. From museums and the preservation of old buildings to broader questions of community and identity, heritage is now a political issue. This book explores what 'heritage' means and how it is used to encourage people to identify with particular places and 'traditions'. The authors show how it is used to strengthen the identification of citizens with their government, and with particular social groupings. The resources that are poured into preserving 'heritage' mean that questions of identity are widely discussed at a policy level: what does it mean to be American or British, or a minority in any society? This book shows how heritage is used commercially and politically to shape the way people see themselves and their environment.

About the Author:

Gregory Ashworth is Professor of Heritage Management at the University of Groningen.

About this edition

• Publisher: Pluto Press
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0745322859
• ISBN 13: 9780745322858
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 248